Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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Recruiting Abroad: The Next Frontier MURPHY'S LAW DAN MURPHY crossing the country in search of their team's next batch of recruits. How long will it be before those coaches start packing their passports when they take to the road? Seventy-four players from outside A n army of assistant coaches from every major college football pro- gram spent the past month criss- the United States suited up for col- lege teams last fall, according to the International Federation of American Football, a number that has grown steadily during the past 10 years. They're starting to make a noticeable impact on the game. Australians Brad Wing and Jesse In 2011, Notre Dame signees (left to right) Josh Atkinson, Stephon Tuitt, Anthony Rabasa, Matt Hegarty and George Atkinson III played for Team USA in the USA vs. The World All-Star Game, and the day may come when the Irish recruit players from The World squad. PHOTO BY JOHN HAYNSWORTH Williams stole the spotlight at times for LSU and Alabama in this year's national championship game. South Florida's Maikon Bonani, a Brazilian native, made three field goals in an upset win over Notre Dame in its season opener. The Irish also got a taste of German football late in the season while playing against Kasim Edebali and Bjoern Werner, sopho- more defensive ends at Boston Col- lege and Florida State, respectively. The top teams in Europe and the rest of the world are on par with America's Division III schools, IFAF spokesman Michael Preston said, but more diamonds in the rough are emerging as national develop- ment programs grow stronger. The most recent football census counted roughly 200,000 non-American par- ticipants in the sport with 40.6 per- cent of them under the age of 15. Preston said the Division I-caliber nated its sport in the middle of the 20th century in part due to its na- tional appeal and ability to attract talent from anywhere in the country, has one of the most recognizable col- lege athletics brands in the world. When Florida State's Werner was gearing up for the Champs Sports Bowl in December he told reporters that Notre Dame was the only college team he knew of when he was learn- ing the game in his homeland. "Actually, the only team I knew in Germany was Notre Dame for some reason," he said. "I'd seen their hats and stuff like that. It's crazy even when I wasn't [playing] football you just see it somewhere: Notre Dame Fighting Irish." The Irish are one of the few college trip to Japan when a group of "Irish legends" beat the Japanese National Team. Steenberge said as more teams start to play overseas, interest level will rise and foreign teams will have better access to the equipment they need to create competitive football players. "The kids in that country would get behind a team. You're going to see Notre Dame stuff all over Ireland this year," he said. One of Steenberge's many roles at BY DAN MURPHY players usually stand out by the time they hit 15 or 16 years old. Those that want to pursue the game further come to the U.S. for a couple years of prep school or junior college in hopes of landing a scholarship of- fer. As college coaches continue to search for ways to get a leg up on the competition in recruiting, it's not hard to imagine some trying to get a head start on off-the-radar players by looking overseas. There may not be a team in better position to take advantage of the growing, untapped market than the Irish. Notre Dame, a team that domi- 6 MARCH 2012 football teams that have scheduled games abroad, which helps to build that international recognition. Notre Dame will play its third game away from the American continent when it faces Navy in Dublin in September, and talk of a fourth, in China, has already started for 2013. Pac-12 com- missioner Larry Scott said he hopes the Stanford-Notre Dame game in two years will be the first of many that his conference exports to Asia. Playing international games is a trend that could catch on in a hurry, according to Global Football founder Patrick Steenberge. Steenberge, who was 2-0 as a starting quarterback at Notre Dame in 1971, has organized nearly two dozen American football games in Europe, Asia and Africa. He orchestrated Notre Dame's 2009 Global Football over the years has been helping foreign standouts like Werner make their way to the U.S. as exchange students in time to get noticed by college coaches. He said the idea of coaches scouring the Eu- ropean countryside for a hidden gem is still a bit far-fetched, but he sees no reason why international all-star games and combines won't start to attract the scouts. On National Signing Day, hours after the fax machines were packed away for another year, the third an- nual International Bowl between a team of U.S. high school all-stars and the top players from around the world kicked off in Austin, Texas. The World team, made up of players from 19 different countries, rolled to a 35-29 win that was more lopsided than the final score indicates. It may be time to start looking. ✦ Dan Murphy has been a writer for Blue & Gold Illustrated since August 2011. He can be reached at dmurphy@blueandgold.com BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED