Notre Dame Football: The Irish MUST land Rocco Spindler

After losing some key offensive line targets in the 2021 class over the last few weeks, it has now become vital that Notre Dame lands OL Rocco Spindler.

With the news Friday that offensive line target Caleb Johnson committed to Auburn, Notre Dame is now in a tough spot. It must land more offensive line talent to pair with Blake Fisher and Pat Coogan, but doing so has been a real struggle in the 2021 recruiting cycle.

Notre Dame has built the reputation of being ‘O-Line U’ over recent years, but that did not come by chance. It was created by the Notre Dame staff recruiting the position hard year in and year out, and churning top-notch talent out into the NFL.

There is a solid list of targets left for the Irish in the 2021 recruiting class along the offensive line, but there is none bigger than the Michigan product, Rocco Spindler. If you are a person that watches recruiting closely, Spindler was always the big name next to Will Shipley that Notre Dame must land in this class in order for it to be in the top five in the nation.

Standing at 6’5″ and 295-pounds, Rocco Spindler is a massive kid considering he will be entering his senior season this fall. On 247sports.com, he is ranked as the No.2 offensive guard in the nation, as well as the 44th overall player. With a solid senior season, there is plenty of reason to believe Spindler could be a five-star by 2021 signing day.

Spindler has spoken in length many times about how much he loves South Bend and Notre Dame, both the football program and the academics as well. However, Michigan is a huge player in the Rocco Spindler sweepstakes, as it is right in his backyard.

The impressive lineman announced in March on Twitter his top 10 schools, which will be narrowed down to five on May 22. Notre Dame’s competition for Spindler’s pledge at the moment are as follows: Michigan, Ohio State, LSU, Tennesee, Penn State, Oklahoma, Alabama, Arizona State, and Florida.

As you can see, some of the biggest and best programs in college football are after Spindler’s services, which makes it all the more vital that Notre Dame lands him.

Many who know the situation well expect Spindler’s decision to come down to Notre Dame and Michigan, but Spindler has vowed to not make a decision until he gets the chance to visit his top schools again.

If Spindler chooses to commit elsewhere, this would be another massive hit to the Notre Dame 2021 recruiting class that started off so impressively with five-star QB Tyler Buchner, 4-star defensive tackle Gabriel Rubio, and 5-star offensive lineman Blake Fisher.

Looking past Spindler at other offensive line targets in the 2021 class, there are some solid players, but none that match Spindler’s size and ability, other than offensive lineman Nolan Rucci out of Pennsylvania. Rucci remains interested in Notre Dame, but it does not appear he will end up in South Bend.

Other targets include Reuben Fatheree II, Rayshaun Benny, Matthew Wykoff, and Tristan Bounds.

Notre Dame is not necessarily favored in any of the above recruitments, and will most definitely have to go off of this list and offer more talent if Spindler ends up elsewhere.