Notre Dame Football Recruiting Update: Friday, October 12, 2012

Oct. 6, 2012; Chicago, IL, USA; Fireworks explode over Soldier Field after the Notre Dame Fighting Irish defeated the Miami Hurricanes 41-3. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-US PRESSWIRE

According to Rivals.com, Notre Dame currently has 21 commitments for the 2013 season. This includes one 5 star player, eleven 4 star players, and nine 3 star players. Currently Notre Dame is ranked 5th overall in recruiting.

Juwaan Williams

A 3 star that stands 6’1’’ and 180 pounds. He is considered an athlete, but listed as a wide receiver during recruiting. This guy is an athlete to say the least, mainly playing quarterback he also played wide receiver and defensive back. He was impressive at all positions, but the film showed him the most at quarterback. He will more than likely not play quarterback in college, but he has a decent skill set as a quarterback. Notre Dame obviously is looking for that corner or defensive back that is going to develop into an elite player. Could this guy be it? Williams has instincts that put him in the right position, but he tackles well with good form. He was at the safety position and a nickel cornerback when he played on the defensive side of the ball. At safety this guy flies to the ball and has great ball skills picking one off and taking it to the house. Williams’s ball skills and vision are his best attributes and these could be used on either side of the ball. This guy could be a 4 star recruit, but since he mainly plays quarterback that is what most people rank him for. He has some technique issues in coverage and running routes, but those are easy fixes and I see that in the 4 star receivers all the time.

Chris Hawkins

A 4 star recruit that stands 5’11’’ 170 pounds, that is currently committed to USC. It is reported that he is supposed to visit Notre Dame tomorrow for the Stanford game. The Notre Dame coaching staff needs to come up with some selling points for Hawkins to flip him from USC. This guy is a heck of a cover corner that has great ball skills returning punts and kickoffs. He lacks the physicality that cornerbacks need at the college level, but that will come when he adds muscle to his frame. Hawkins is a little short for his position, but there are plenty of successful corners that are under 6 feet. Footwork in coverage is very important and keeps the defender in control. Hawkins has great footwork and recovers well from double move routes. If Notre Dame could convince this guy to change his mind it would be huge. The selling points are obviously playing time and I can’t wait to see the atmosphere tomorrow at the game, because it will be crazy. Let’s show Hawkins how special it is to play at Notre Dame.

As we stated in the podcast recruiting is very slow this time of year, but Notre Dame could takes some recruits away from other schools. Williams would more than likely be tried out on the defensive side of the ball first. This guy will take some time to develop, but could be a 3 year starter. Hawkins on the other hand could be a four year starter if he puts on some more muscle and ups his physicality when tackling.