Irish class still strong after poor season

Posted February 01, 2017 6:00 am

By NOAH TRISTER

Notre Dame's awful season didn't prevent the Fighting Irish from bringing in a highly ranked recruiting class.

Notre Dame's class was 11th in the composite ranking at 247sports.com as of Wednesday night. That's about where the team has ended up in recent years as well. Last season's 4-8 record didn't seem to have a lingering effect.

"Since I've been here, if you look at the average rankings, we're anywhere from five to 15," coach Brian Kelly said. "We're going to fall somewhere in that range because there's a line there we can't get over based upon what our distinctions are here. That line is going to keep us between five and 15."

Other things to know:

Top 25 Class: Yes.

Best in class: Brock Wright, TE, Cypress, Texas. The 6-foot-5, 245-pound Wright is the No. 3 tight end recruit in the country, according to Scout.com.

Best of the rest: Josh Lugg, OL, Pittsburgh; Cole Kmet, TE, Lake Barrington, Illinois; Aaron Banks, OL, Alameda, California; Robert Hainsey, OL, Pittsburgh; David Adams, LB, Pittsburgh. The Irish actually signed four players from Pittsburgh in this class.

Late addition: Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, LB, Hampton, Virginia. Kelly was in the middle of his signing day news conference when his cellphone rang. "Jeremiah?" he said before walking out of the room. He announced Owusu-Koramoah's signing when he returned.

One that got away: Pete Werner, LB, Indianapolis. Notre Dame didn't list a single recruit from Indiana. Werner was the second-ranked recruit in the state, according to 247sports.com's composite. He ended up with Ohio State.

How they'll fit in: Kelly said he wasn't going to pass up on a player like Kmet even though the Irish also landed a highly regarded tight end in Wright. Notre Dame signed one quarterback - Avery Davis of Cedar Hill, Texas. Kelly says he's "an extremely athletic quarterback that can come in and do some things right away."

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More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

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Follow Noah Trister at www.Twitter.com/noahtrister

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