As Notre Dame prepares for what could be a massive weekend, it’s not starting things off all that well. On Monday morning, the Fighting Irish lost the commitment of Amarri Irvin. The announcement that he’s instead committed to Virginia Tech, not long after he took in the sights and sounds of James Franklin’s new program.
The 2027 Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy linebacker had been committed to Marcus Freeman’s program since November of last year. However, this spring, there’s been one sign after another that the 4-star prospect was looking around. He’d taken a few visits before his trip to Blacksburg, and it became an open question as to whether the Irish coaching staff knew about and was okay with those official visits. One visit to Michigan State was later confirmed to be sanctioned by the coaching staff, since Irvin’s father is a Spartan alum.
Irvin’s decommitment from Notre Dame and Virginia Tech was foreshadowed over the weekend with 247 Sports recruiting analysts Evan G. Watkins and Brian Dohn submitting Crystal Balls for Irvin to land with VaTech. James Franklin will almost certainly celebrate the latest recruiting win, but the good news for ND is that a shifting linebacker board could make this flip news merely a blip on the radar toward an elite haul.
In fact, it’s possible Irvin has been reading the tea leaves and felt as though he was no longer the top linebacker target for Freeman’s staff. There is growing confidence surrounding ND’s chances with Chicago (Ill.) Mount Carmel star Roman Igwebuike after his official visit to South Bend this past weekend. Things also seem to be trending great with elite Tampa Bay (Fla.) Jesuit linebacker Kaden Henderson. That would be quite a statement from new linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary if he can close this class strong.
Amarri Irvin flip could matter less if Notre Dame football lands Kaden Henderson
The strangest twist in the Amarri Irvin story is that he’s now officially the second member of the family to be committed to Notre Dame and eventually go elsewhere. Sedrick Irvin Jr., who was once committed to the Irish back in the 2023 recruiting class. Notre Dame opted to move on from Irvin at the time, and he now plays for Stanford. His father was a standout running back with Michigan State in the 1990s.
Notre Dame didn’t lose the battle for Amarri Irvin without putting up a fight. The staff reportedly spent time talking him out of an official visit to Texas A&M over the weekend of June 5. There was another moment of hope that Irvin would shut things down, but instead, he made his way to Virginia Tech for an official visit that weekend. That visit was enough to finally swing things. Such swings are hardly rare this time of year, and at least Freeman seems to have positioned himself in good position to shake things off.
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