Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/841614
2017 Recruiting Class Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown (High School) David Adams LB 6-0½ 222 Pittsburgh (Central Catholic) Became Central Catholic's all-time leading tackler and played in the Under Armour All-America Game. Jafar Armstrong WR 6-0 170 Lee's Summit, Mo. (Bishop Miege [Kan.]) Set the Kansas state record for career touchdown receptions with 45. Aaron Banks OL 6-5½ 310 Alameda, Calif. (El Cerrito) A consensus four-star recruit that was ranked as high as No. 121 nationally by Rivals. Avery Davis QB 5-11 185 Cedar Hill, Texas (Cedar Hill) Threw for 2,876 yards and 37 touchdowns as a senior, and added 369 yards and six scores on the ground. Jonathan Doerer K 6-3 188 Charlotte, N.C. (South Mecklenburg) Made 9 of 16 field goals as a senior, with a long of 44 yards, and averaged 41 yards per punt. Darnell Ewell DT 6-4 280 Norfolk, Va. (Lake Taylor) Notched 44 tackles, three sacks and three forced fumbles during his senior season. Jordan Genmark Heath S 6-2 200 San Diego (Central Catholic) Registered 59 tackles, four interceptions and five passes broken up during his senior season. Dillan Gibbons OL 6-4 315 Clearwater, Fla. (Central Catholic) Earned first-team All-America Small Schools accolades from MaxPreps as a senior. Robert Hainsey OL 6-4½ 292 Pittsburgh (IMG Academy [Fla.]) Named to the 2016 All-USA Florida first-team offense by USA Today as a senior. Kurt Hinish DT 6-2 280 Pittsburgh (Central Catholic) Named to USA Today's All-USA Pennsylvania first-team defense following his senior season. C.J. Holmes RB 6-0 206 Hamden, Conn. (Cheshire Academy) Rushed for 1,169 yards and 13 touchdowns on 142 carries as a senior. Cole Kmet TE 6-4 235 Lake Barrington, Ill. (St. Viator) Regarded as the No. 3 tight end nationally by three services and No. 4 by the other. Joshua Lugg OL 6-6 280 Pittsburgh (North Allegheny) Participated in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl after his senior campaign. Jonathan MacCollister DE 6-3 244 Deland, Fla. (Bishop Moore) Named to the Associated Press Class 5A All-State first team as a senior. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah ROV 6-2 205 Hampton, Va. (Bethel) Notched 71 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, seven interceptions and five forced fumbles during his senior season. Isaiah Robertson S 6-1½ 208 Bolingbrook, Ill. (Neuqua Valley) Named All-USA Illinois first team on defense by USA Today as both a junior and senior. Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa DE 6-4 250 Ewa Beach, Hawai'i (Kapolei) Recorded 18 sacks as a senior and was named first-team All-USA Hawaii by USA Today. Kofi Wardlow DE 6-3 210 Washington, D.C. (St. John's) Posted 39.5 tackles for loss and 13.5 sacks in his two prep seasons after taking up football for the first time as a junior. Drew White LB 6-1 220 Boca Raton, Fla. (St. Thomas Aquinas) Led national powerhouse St. Thomas Aquinas in tackles (107) as a senior. Brock Wright TE 6-4½ 252 Cypress, Texas (Cy-Fair) Rated as the No. 1 tight end in the country by both Rivals and ESPN. Michael Young WR 5-10 170 Saint Rose, La. (Destrehan) Hauled in 35 passes for 507 yards and six touchdowns despite missing four games as a senior. Recruiting Responsibilities DelVaughn Alexander (wide receivers) — Wide receivers Autry Denson (running backs) — Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and South Carolina Mike Elko (defensive coordinator) — Defensive prospects Mike Elston (defensive line/recruiting coordinator) — Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania Harry Hiestand (offensive line) —Offensive linemen Clark Lea (linebackers) — Tennessee and North Carolina Chip Long (offensive coordinator) — Tight ends and general offensive prospects Todd Lyght (defensive backs) — Texas and Michigan Brian Polian (special teams) — Illinois, California, Oregon, Washington, Hawai'i and the rest of the West region Brian Polian Pulls Top Talent From Hawai'i … Again Notre Dame special teams coach Brian Po- lian has taken plenty of flights to Hawai'i to land top prospects from the islands. Former Notre Dame standout and five-star recruit Manti Te'o is the most recognized, but the connections don't stop there. Polian was also the lead recruiter for former Irish receiver Robby Toma. When Polian was hired back to Notre Dame following the departure of Scott Booker, the special teams expert went right back to work in Hawai'i. Polian's hiring was announced Dec. 27 and the Irish offered Kapolei High defensive tackle Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa Jan. 6. When Tagovailoa-Amosa signed, Polian was fired up to land another top prospect from the Aloha State. "He's got very good feet and change of di- rection," Polian said. "He might be one of the more athletic interior defensive linemen in the country this year. He had incredible production as a senior with 18 sacks. "He's really self-motivated and has a great disposition and is very bright. He's a hard working guy, and all of those things will trans- late not only on the football field, but in the classroom and socially. He has all the things that we're looking for." Landing Tagovailoa-Amosa brought back memories of Polian's first stint with the Irish. "The first time I met Myron I told the of- fice that, like with Manti, he had the makeup and courage to go against things that people wanted him to do," Polian said. Pittsburgh Central Catholic linebacker David Adams (Under Armour All-American Game) was one of six Irish signees selected to participate in a postseason all-star contest. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM