Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com JANUARY 2019 41 FOOTBALL RECRUITING the top 200 players in the country by Rivals (200), ESPN (160) and 247Sports (113), and he was chosen to play in the All-American Bowl, which was formerly known as the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. The gifted Texan has the length that Elston and defensive coordina- tor Clark Lea covet at end. He's 6-4 and combines good power to go with that length. Recruited initially as a drop end, Osafo-Mensah projects to be able to play either end position. Adding Cross and Osafo-Mensah to the class provides much-needed depth, but even with them the num- bers are still tight. Both Osafo-Men- sah and Cross are also power play- ers first, and there isn't a figure in the class that brings the kind of pure speed rush that Okwara provided to the defense this season. Notre Dame made unsuccessful runs at Lewis Center (Ohio) Olen- tangy Orange five-star end Zach Harrison, Aledo (Texas) four-star pass rusher Colt Ellison and Phoe- nix O'Connor four-star edge player Bralen Trice. FOSKEY A PRIME TARGET The Irish staff also made an early run at Concord (Calif.) De La Salle four-star end Isaiah Foskey, but it took time to get traction with him. He took a summer visit to campus in July, and that initial trip was a game changer. Foskey quickly took to the Irish program, so much so that he re- turned the weekend of Sept. 1 for an official visit the same weekend Notre Dame defeated Michigan. Foskey witnessed the Notre Dame ends rack up 12 quarterback pres- sures, which included four hits on Michigan quarterback Shea Patter- son. The Irish also held the Wolver- ines to a season-low 58 rushing yards in that victory. While Notre Dame would still like to add Carlsbad (Calif.) High line- backer and Washington commit Asa Turner to the class, Foskey remains the primary target on the board. He would add quality and much-needed depth at defensive end. Foskey is a consensus four-star re- cruit, and is ranked the No. 167 over- all player in the country by Rivals. A standout at both tight end and defen- sive end, he projects primarily to the drop end position (where Okwara and Hayes play) in the Notre Dame defense. When he showed up at the Nike Football The Opening Regional in March, Foskey measured in at 6-5 and 233 pounds. That's premier size for the drop end spot, and the kind of length/range any coaching staff seeks along the perimeter. With so much tight end in his back- ground, Foskey has a unique feel for the pass game, which combines with his length to make him a weapon as a cover defender at drop end. What made Foskey such a top tar- get for the staff — and so important to Notre Dame's 2019 class — is his potential as a pass rusher. He has the length, athleticism and edge rush- ing prowess to potentially provide the defense what Okwara has consis- tently delivered. At 233 pounds and an inch taller than Okwara, Foskey projects to bring pressure with an even bigger frame. He shows an outstanding burst off the edge, and his length allows him to quickly close on the quarterback. Playing for national powerhouse De La Salle has afforded him the oppor- tunity to compete against elite prep talent, and his game has grown over the last year because of it. Adding Foskey also would give Notre Dame the flexibility to even- tually move Osafo-Mensah to the strongside end position, where his game could be even better suited, even though he was recruited ini- tially as a drop end. Foskey and Osafo-Mensah have skill sets that complement each other quite well. When a team can land a player that allows a teammate to move to a spot where his skills proj- ect even better, it adds even greater value to the recruiting class. Notre Dame needs to close with Foskey, who is still looking at Wash- ington, Ohio State, Michigan and California. Missing on him means Notre Dame merely adds a quality end unit and a strong overall defen- sive line class. Adding Foskey gives the Irish an elite level line haul, one that can restock the position when the vaunted 2016 class finally runs out of eligibility. ✦ The Fighting Irish needed to add talented defensive ends in their 2019 class, and Forth Worth (Texas) Nolan Catholic four-star NaNa Osafo-Mensah is a highly valued commit. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM