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I thought I would start a thread to relay what I have been reading and in some cases hearing about Notre Dame Commits and guys they're currently go after at the All-American games.

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Most of this info is free, so keep that in mind and feel free to browse the Rivals and Scout messages boards and such if you want to read more.

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So, here is a collection of what I've been hearing, feel free to add to this anyone... I just figured it would be good to have it all in one thread.

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Note: Even though it's going to sound like these are my evaluations, they aren't. I'd just rather not attribute every little bit of info to the mouth it came out of over and over again. I have also added at the end of each evaluation my own personal thoughts about how each player's performance might effect his ranking.

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Michael Golic Jr., Center: Golic struggled in one-on-one drills, which is to be expected considering his lack of size. He has had a lot of trouble with bull rushes, but when he has had a chance to work in the scrimmage, he has looked much better. He has shown decent feet and technique, but has aways to go physically. I don't think this will effect Golic's ranking... I think this is what people pretty much expected.

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Lane Celland, Guard/Tackle: Clelland has been working more at tackle than guard during practice, and has looked shaky at both spots. He's another kid that just doesn't have the size and strength to compete with the Marcus Forstons of the world right now. He has looked good when he's gotten off the ball well and gotten into the defender, but he's another guy that will need time before he contributes... I think Lane could find himself moved down a couple spots unless he can regroup and have a good showing the rest of the week. Again, like Golic, everyone knew he was undersized to begin with, but I think people expected him to be a little stronger.

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Trevor Robinson, OG: Robinson has been very impressive in practice and most feel he's hands down the best interior OL at the game. He is massive - seriously, looking at the practice film he is one of the biggest OL at the game - and very strong. He plays with fire and intensity and has shown impressive technique. He is still raw in pass protection because his high school team was run-first, but that's something he can improve at. Robinson is one of those kids that came into the game with a real strong reputation and already ranked very high. He has looked much better than guys like AJ Harmon and Josh Jenkins, and I wouldn't be surprised to see Trevor ranked the #1 guard in the nation before it's all said and done.

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Braxston Cave, Center: Haven't heard a lot about Braxston but what I have heard has been very positive. He has justified his #1 center ranking and has shown himself to be one of the top offensive linemen at the Under Armour bowl. He has tremendous size, aggressiveness, and strength. He has a nasty mean streak as well. Cave has always been a personal favorite of mine, and I think he's going to be a tremendous player at Notre Dame. His performance at the Under Armour practices has made me even more high on him. You can't get much better than the #1 rated center, but he's been doing a good job justifying that ranking.

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Sean Cwynar, DT/DE: Cwynar has proven to be very hard to move from his spot and has shown tremendous strength. His athleticism is not overly impressive but he's no slouch either. He has shown good leverage and technique and has been hard to block. He has a good spin move and a decent swim move. Looks like he will have a chance to see some playing time next year, as he has the size, strength, and technique to compete. Cwynar is already rated quite high and I don't see that changing. He definitely won't move down in the rankings, but I doubt he moves up much either.

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Brandon Newman, NT: Newman has been the most surprising player at the the Army All-American Bowl. He has been dominating in one-on-one drills and even more impressive in the scrimmage... No one has been able to effectively block him... That's right, he's been prettym uch unblockable. He and Marcus Forston have been hands-down the most impressive defensive tackles at the game. He has phenomenal strength and leverage and is lightning quick off the ball. The only negative reported from the game was his physical shape. He has looked a bit out of shape, and he has worn down a bit as practices have dragged on. That is something that can certainly be remedied, though. I really feel Newman is going to shoot up the rankings provided he continues to impress in the next couple days and plays well in the game. Notre Dame may be getting one hell of a sleeper with this kid. Literally everyone has been raving about him, and not just ND people.

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Darius Fleming, OLB/DE: If Newman has been the most surprising defensive player, Fleming has been the most sheerly impressive at the Army game. He has put on about 20-25 pounds and is playing at about 250 pounds now. He has been unblockable, consistently beating the best tackles in the nation. He is tremendously fast off the edge and has great athleticism. He is a terror when rushing the quarterback. He has been playing defensive end mostly, but has played a bit of OLB... They are going out of a 4-3 base set but it's becoming clear that Darius is absolutely perfect for that hybrid DE/OLB spot at Notre Dame. I fully expect Fleming's stock to rise. He has been getting rave reviews and has just been unstoppable. Wouldn't be surprised to see him become a 5-star player.

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Steven Filer, ILB/OLB/DE: Filer has been getting reps at middle linebacker in this 4-3 defense and has looked decent. There is really a plethora of talent at linebacker in this game. Filer is probably the 3rd or 4th best, but that's not a knock on him at all... It's just that the linebacker talent is just out of this world. Filer has shown good instincts but is not used to playing middle backer in a 4-3. He's more used to plaing ILB in a 3-4, which is where he will play at Notre Dame. I know it might not seem like much of a difference but it's hard to come in and play a difference position for a week and look good doing it. He has also been getting some reps as a DE with his hand on the ground and has looked pretty good in that role. Overall I think Filer will remain where he is ranked now, as he hasn't really separated himself from the pack but has held his own.

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Anthony McDonald, ILB: Haven't heard too much about McDonald. Like Filer, he hasn't really separated himself from the pack, but part of it again is just the sheer level of talent at this game at linebacker. Just some real big time players there this year... With that said, McDonald has shown good speed and a real nose for the ball. He has great instincts and really started showing something when it got down to reading plays and making decisions in the run game. He is still a little bit raw in terms of playing in space. But that's the kind of thing that kids learn in college. He has all the physical tools to be a big time player and from all accounts is a smart kid. He's another guy that hasn't looked bad at all but also hasn't really separated himself. I think he's another kid that's going to stay right where he is in the rankings.

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Robert Blanton, CB/S: Blanton was dropped from a 4 star to a 3 star by Rivals following a shaky performance at the Shrine Bowl, but he has really been impressive in practice at the Army game. He has literally shut down everyone he has faced. No one has been able to complete anything against him. He has shown great instincts and really plays the ball extremely well. He is faster than I thought and has been able to keep up with even the fastest wide receivers so far. He has also shown a lot of block-shedding ability and has a lot of attitude and confidence as a player. He's another kid that gets little respect from recruiting services but he has been real impressive this week. I'm expecting Blanton to move back up to a 4-star on Rivals assuming he doesn't completely suck in the game, which I don't see how or why he would.

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Dayne Crist, QB: By most accounts, Crist has been the most impressive QB at the game. He was 8 for 8 in the accuracy challenge and has shown very, very good arm strength. He will likely start the game for the west and has just looked real good. Every time Crist gets a chance to show his stuff he impresses people. He has been rising in the rankings steadily all year and it's pretty obvious he's one of the top 3 QBs in the country at this point. I don't know if he'll move up in the rankings too much, but he's already pretty high so it's not a big deal.

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Michael Floyd, WR: Has been described as the most difficult to cover by some East team defensive backs, and has shown a lot of polish and athleticism. He uses his body extremely well and has very good hands. He's not a burner but he has good speed and is very good at getting separation. He's ready to play now, and I fully expect him to see the field a lot in his freshman year. He's just the real deal, can't really say much more than that. Probably won't move too much in the rankings but it really doesn't matter, because he is quite simply one of the best receivers in the nation and has proved it so far this week.

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John Goodman, WR: Goodman has shown very, very good speed and is quite possibly the fastest receiver at the game. He is still raw as a receiver... He played QB this year so that's to be expected. Has shown good hands at times but has also dropped some easy catches. Most likely just a lapse in concentration. He has gotten consistent separation and can outrun most defensive backs. This kid is a fine talent, and he's much better than he is given credit for. In a field of receivers that is top-notch, he has held his own and hasn't looked at all out of place. Another guy that probably won't rise or fall in the rankings.

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Kyle Rudolph, TE: They haven't really been working the tight ends into the offense much but he has looked impressive when given the chance. He is a tremendous athlete and is huge at 6'7" 235 lbs. He has shown a lot of skill as a blocker, showing good technique. He has given defensive backs fits with his size and speed combo. This kid is hands down the #1 tight end in the nation and it's not even close. Once he fills out (I think he could play at 260 by the time he's a junior or senior), he will turn into a devastating blocker. He is the total package and barring injury he will see the field for the Irish this year.

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Jonas Gray, RB: Gray sprained his ankle early in practice and was out of action the past couple days. Before he was injured, however, many people thoguht he was the most impressive back on the first day of practice. He suited up again today and looked good. He runs with good power and has very good speed and moves. I'm reluctant to predict early playing time because of the logjam of talent at RB at ND, but he really is good enough to transcend that. He won't rise or fall in the rankings much cuz no one has really gotten that much of a look at him, but what he has shown has been impressive. This kid was a real coup for Notre Dame in my opinion.

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Jamoris Slaughter, S: Haven't heard much about Slaughter due to an injury. Not much info out there about the injury, but I don't think it's too serious. It's starting to look like it will keep him out of the game though. Just really haven't heard much about him.

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Deion Walker, WR (uncommitted): Another guy that was injured... Really not much info on him at the game, but the injury is not serious.

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Gerrell Robinson, ATH (uncommitted): Robinson has been playing safety at the Army game and has looked solid. He is just a tremendous athlete with great size and good speed. He's just raw right now. This is the type of athlete ND needs to get back to the top, though, and if he chooses ND I have no doubt he will settle into a position and be an impact player before too long.

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Hopefully I didn't forget anyone... But that's the rundown on our commits and potential commits at the All-American games.

Featured Replies

Thanks for the update...I think Newman said in his interview that he hadn't played in a while so the fatigue is to be expected...I love his energy for ND and think he is the diamond in the rough kind of prospect.

That for the recap 2828, great job. I for one am not to concerned about how an OL blocks in the 1-on-1 drills because the DL has a tremendous advantage in that situation. I will be more interested to see how our guys block in the game situation before I try and assess their current skills.

Great job the man. That had to take a ton of time to type...haha.

thanks the man, good job

Great Post 2828, thanks for the recap

nice work. thanks.

Great summary! Thanks for pulling it together 2828!

awsome post. if darius flemmig is really up to 250lbs. right now then i don't think their is anyway he doesn't take over the OLB spot opposite brian smith next year. it's also very exciting to hear great things about newman.

awsome post. if darius flemmig is really up to 250lbs. right now then i don't think their is anyway he doesn't take over the OLB spot opposite brian smith next year. it's also very exciting to hear great things about newman.

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What about Kerry Neal?

the best players play and if flemming is really as good as they say then kerry neal maybecome a very good backup for either smith or flemming.

is goodman really the fastest WR on the east team?

awsome post. if darius flemmig is really up to 250lbs. right now then i don't think their is anyway he doesn't take over the OLB spot opposite brian smith next year. it's also very exciting to hear great things about newman.

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Fleming said he is actually at 230lbs and he is hoping to get to around 240lbs by the summer.

awsome post. if darius flemmig is really up to 250lbs. right now then i don't think their is anyway he doesn't take over the OLB spot opposite brian smith next year. it's also very exciting to hear great things about newman.

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Yeah, as someone pointed out, Fleming is actually at 230... I must have seen an estimate somewhere and thought it was his actual weight.

I still think Kerry Neal is going to be a monster. If he's backing anyone up, we'll be doing pretty good.

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