Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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20 MAY 2024 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY JACK SOBLE L ate in the night Nov. 25 in Palo Alto, Calif., then-freshman of- fensive lineman Charles Jagusah took the field for the first time in a Notre Dame uniform. He didn't take long to make something happen. On Jagusah's first play, lining up at left guard with Notre Dame up 56-23 and 3:15 to go in the fourth quarter, he pulled to the right on a run play to then-freshman running back Jeremiyah Love. The play- side Stanford linebacker, Jagusah's as- signment, crashed harder than expected toward the line of scrimmage. The fresh- man engaged his man on the run, flipped his hips toward the right sideline and walled him off, allowing Love to bounce outside and gain 16 yards. Watching the game from his home in Rock Island, Ill., Fritz Dieudonné — Ja- gusah's high school coach — pulled out his phone and texted his former player's mom, Sheila Doak. Dieudonné had a simple message: "Your son is so freaking good." "People that don't understand line play or don't understand what it takes to change direction without losing form, without losing power and the reaction time," Dieudonné told Blue & Gold Il- lustrated. "I don't think people under- stand how difficult that was and how insanely athletic that is." Jagusah would only play four more snaps in that game, but behind the scenes, he was making a strong impres- sion. The Irish named him the starter at left for the Dec. 29 Sun Bowl against Oregon State after Joe Alt opted out to prepare for the NFL Draft. He's pro- jected to maintain that role this season and beyond. The On3 five-star prospect's quick ascension to the lineup caught many on the Notre Dame beat off guard. It was no shock for those who coached and recruited him. Jagusah himself didn't think much of it. "My focus is just more about getting better, and if it works out that I'm start- ing, that's good," Jagusah said March 20. "If not and someone else is doing better, then it is what it is. But I've just got to keep progressing every day." TALKING TECHNIQUE Notre Dame hired offensive line coach Harry Hiestand for his second stint with the Irish in January 2022. It would be the last stop of Hiestand's decorated ca- reer because he retired 13 months later to spend more time with his family after 41 years in coaching. When he took the job, he was told to check out the big tackle from Rock Is- land (Ill.) Alleman Catholic. Jagusah's film checked out pretty quickly. Hiestand knew he would be re- cruiting a good player. Of the offensive linemen he'd coached in the past, Hies- tand saw shades of Ronnie Stanley and BRAINS AND BRAWN The physical tools are obvious, but Charles Jagusah's intangibles could make him the next superstar Notre Dame offensive lineman Jagusah, who was rated as a five-star prospect by On3 in the 2023 class, made his first career start at the end of his freshman year versus Oregon State in the Sun Bowl and immediately impressed. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER