'Door is open' for Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame to flip this Michigan OL commit

Notre Dame has been hot on the path of Michigan commit Louis Esposito II and after the offensive line took a weekend trip to South Bend last weekend, it looks like a flip is on the table.

Esposito also has some secondary ties to the Irish, as Rivals/On3 writer Mike Singer points out.

"His high school is very close to Michigan, but it's also the high school that CJ Carr attended," Singer said.

Notre Dame closes in on flip of Michigan OL commit Louis Esposito

How much Esposito II and Carr have spoken about the Irish is unknown, but it's never a bad thing when the starting quarterback is an alum. Michigan also had a major tie to Esposito. His father, Lou, had been on the staff of the Wolverines since Sherrone Moore hired him in 2024, but he took a job with the Baltimore Ravens, joining Jesse Minter's staff.

"Esposito's dad was on Michigan's staff under [Moore] and then was retained by Kyle Whittingham, but he just got a job with the Baltimore Ravens. So it seems, with him gone, the door is open for another school to flip him and Notre Dame is in pursuit," Singer added.

The reason that Esposito is so ripe for a flip is the bonding that he has done with Marcus Freeman and staff since the Irish's recruitment of him kicked into high gear. Esposito told Tom Loy of 247Sports that being on the South Bend campus felt right. 

"The trip was good, it was a two-day trip," Esposito said to Loy. "I learned a lot about their culture and how they play football. What caught my eye was how powerful the campus felt. Places like the grotto and basilica."

With nine commitments in the class, Notre Dame has climbed into the top five of the 247Sports rankings. If the staff could flip Esposito, they would add him to the offensive line class that includes four-star tackle James Halter.