Notre Dame and Penn State have squared off again and again in the last few years for some of the top recruits in the country. Now, the Fighting Irish are hoping to steal away Deonte Flemings, a prize of the 2028 class that committed to the Nittany Lions. Despite his pledge to Matt Campbell and his crew, Marcus Freeman is trying to pull him away from Happy Valley and towards South Bend.
Flemings committed to Penn State back in January, but in the last few months he’s had a roving eye. Notre Dame is far from the only school that’s trying to flip him from the Nittany Lions, but they might be one of the programs that have the best chance of getting his services should he decide to become a full “free agent.”
The 6-foot-3, 190-pound 4-star cornerback from McDowell High School in Erie, Pennsylvania, is ranked as the No. 104 player in the 2028 class, the No. 9 player at his cornerback position and the No. 3 player in the state of Pennsylvania according to Rivals Industry Rankings.
In addition to Notre Dame and Penn State, Flemings has received offers from Auburn, Georgia Tech, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ole Miss, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas A&M, and West Virginia, among others.
Deonte Flemings values Notre Dame football academics and coaching relationships
It’s not hard to see why Flemings is so sought after. The Penn State commit has contributed on both sides of the ball for McDowell, playing cornerback while also receiving snaps at quarterback. MaxPreps credits him with 10 tackles, including six solo stops, in five recorded varsity games as a freshman in 2024. During his sophomore season, he took on a larger offensive role and split time at quarterback while continuing to play in the secondary.
The young, up-and-coming star recently talked to Irish Sports Daily about his interest in Notre Dame, and one of the things that stood out most is quite familiar. "I would say just what they bring to the table as far as academics and football aspects and the coaching staff," Flemings said. "They call and check up on me, and they're building relationships. That's important to me in this recruiting process."
Under Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame has managed to make academics a big focus of his staff’s recruiting pitch to some of the best prospects in the country. Of course, the relationships the coaching staff has built with players like Flemings are a big piece of the puzzle as well.
Flemings has especially struck up a relationship with Notre Dame safeties coach Jevaughn Codlin.
"My impression of those guys are very high," Flemings said of Codlin and defensive backs coach Aaron Henry. "Just the way J-Cod calls me, and he makes sure he sends me videos of what the guys are doing at practice, what the guys do in their off time.”
Of course, with Deonte Flemings a member of the 2028 class, Notre Dame has the benefit of time being on their side, even if he’s not ready to decommit and pledge elsewhere. The more time the Irish have to work on the native Pennsylvanian, the better.
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