Notre Dame Football Recruiting: Top 10 Recruiting Misses of the Brian Kelly Era
By Andrew Hall
No. 5. Amon-Ra St. Brown – Wide Receiver – Class of 2018 (USC)
Equanimeous St. Brown selected Notre Dame on National Signing Day in 2015. Equanimeous is the oldest of three tremendous athletes. The youngest, Amon-Ra, might be the best. From the outset of his recruitment, Notre Dame was locked in a battle with USC.
Despite an uphill battle, the Fighting Irish had an excellent shot at landing the 5-star Wide Receiver especially after Notre Dame obliterated the Trojans during his official visit to South Bend in 2017. However, Amon-Ra had his miss givings about playing in the Notre Dame offense. It is no secret that the Irish struggled to throw the ball efficiently with Brandon Wimbush as Quarterback. Even though Chip Long promised that these issues would be fixed, Amon-Ra wanted a friendlier offensive system. When his high school teammate J.T. Daniels reclassified into the 2018 class, it sealed the deal that the Trojans would land the Mater Dei receiver.
In his first two seasons in Los Angeles, Amon-Ra has been as advertised. In his Freshman campaign, he hauled in 60 passes for 750 yards with 3 touchdowns. He continued his upward trajectory in 2019 with 1042 yards and 7 total touchdowns.
Why is St. Brown ranked here: Amon-Ra ranked as the 11th best recruit in the 2018 class. He would have been one of the highest ranked recruits in Kelly’s tenure. His explosive playmaking ability would certainly have helped in the 2018 and 2019. Perhaps Amon-Ra’s decision look a little silly now. J.T. Daniels is in the transfer portal. USC has complied a 13-12 record while the Irish have tallied a 23-3 run. However, the Trojans’ Air Raid system gives Amon-Ra the opportunity to showcase his talent.