Notre Dame football: What does 2024 DL Owen Wafle bring to the Irish?
By Carlee North
The Notre Dame football program is seemingly landing elite talent every day, this time, they bolstered the 2024 class with a DL from New Jersey.
Notre Dame football has landed its second commitment in the 2024 recruiting class with New Jersey defensive lineman Owen Wafle committing to the Irish on Monday afternoon. Owen was offered back in March during the “Pot of Gold” day for the staff and the minute he got offered the Irish were going to be extremely tough to beat.
He visited about a week later and the connections he built with the staff was better than expected.
The history especially, and the academics of Notre Dame was just something he wasn’t going to pass on and he made it known publicly. Defensive line coach Al Washington is off to a scorching start on the recruiting trail just a couple of months into being named the new defensive line coach in South Bend.
At the moment Wafle has 11 offers from the likes of Michigan State, Boston College, Iowa, and many more.
What will Owen Wafle bring to the Notre Dame football program?
The 6’3 270-pound lineman is going to bring a relentless motor and physicality to the defense. He’s someone that will thrive in the interior of the defensive line if he adds some weight to his frame. He already has a thicker lower body and frame to do so which makes me think he will stay inside upfront.
He’s relentless and stays low off the snap so he has really good leverage when initiating contact. He uses his strength to his advantage and does a solid job shedding off of blockers. Wafle will continue adding some moves and technique to his game but the strength is there and something he relies on a ton.
During his sophomore year, Wafle had 47 total tackles, five tackles for loss, one sack, one fumble recovery, and a forced fumble, and was named to the 2021 Mid Atlantic Prep League first-team defense.
With Wafle committing on Monday, the 2024 class now has two pledges, with both being on the defensive side. He will be joining Brandon Davis-Swain in the defensive line room.
The defensive line is starting strong for 2024 and I don’t expect Al Washington to slow down anytime soon. What a hire by Marcus Freeman when it comes to recruiting. It’ll be fun to watch his players develop and get after it on Saturday that’s for sure. With the second addition to the class, the Irish hold a top 10 class early for the 2024 cycle.