Notre Dame football still face obvious, steep NIL learning curve in recruiting

Over the last month or so, I’ve talked a lot about the struggles Notre Dame football has had recruiting 5-star wide receivers. It seems like part of the problem can be tied back to new WR coach Mike Brown. However, there are other factors at play.

The Fighting Irish are revamping their recruiting approach. However, the school still has some weaknesses in that regard. The latest On3 NIL Tracker rankings underline one of the biggest weaknesses.

According to On3, Notre Dame football has only one player in the Top 20 of NIL Earnings. Riley Leonard is in fact, the only Irish player in the Top 50 at No. 18 among all players.

Notre Dame football and the obvious NIL disadvantages it still faces

When you expand out to the Top 100, there are a few more Golden Domers on the list. Benjamin Morrison (No. 65), CJ Carr (No. 69), Guerby Lambert (No. 75), and Mitchell Evans (No.100) are all in there.

It’s worth pointing out that among the five Notre Dame players listed in On3’s NIL tracker only two are freshmen. And CJ Carr is the highest freshman of the small bunch at a not-so-nice 69th.

Compare that to Ohio State, who has six players in the Top 50. Or Alabama who has Jalen Milroe ranked 4th overall and another two players in the Top 50. 

Meanwhile, Notre Dame has as many players in the Top 64 spots as Appalachian State and UCONN. 

Obviously, these numbers should be taken with a grain of salt. NIL money numbers are notoriously hard to pin down. There really isn’t a great way to get very specific dollars. On3 has its system that allows it to estimate.

They may not be exact, but it’s at least a baseline to look at when wondering why Notre Dame football is struggling a bit at times with the top targets in the country. They simply don’t have the apparatus to compete with the NIL big boys. 

Marcus Freeman and company are working with one hand tied behind their back, and considering that, they’ve had quite a bit of success.