This Is HUGE For Notre Dame... | Daily Notre Dame News & Rumors

[00:00:00]Hi all, welcome to today's edition of Notre Dame Daily, which is of course brought to you by the great folks over at the Fan Arch Sports Network. Hope your day's going well. I'm Pete Mulroy.

[00:00:10]Mentioned yesterday that Notre Dame earned a commitment from 2027 five-star defensive end Abraham Cesay, giving the Domers their third premier edge rusher in the class as they just continue to do unbelievable work in that regard out on the traditional high school recruiting trail. And that recruiting victory for Marcus Freeman also presented another showing just of his absolute masterclass that is him and his staff continue to put on for a class that already included stud edges in New Jersey four-stars Aidan O'Neal and Jackson Vonn, as well as five-star defensive lineman David Fluker and Show, and offensive tackle Olu Olu Obobola, another Garden State kid. You would think it'd be impossible to increase that value that much. Guess again.

[00:00:56]Cesay's addition gives Marcus Freeman's side yet another pure pass rusher, but the type of edge who will also be a nightmare in the run game. Just watch his film. You can now look at a future crop of Irish edge rushers that includes all the names I just mentioned while pairing them with 2026 class members Rodney Dunham and Ebenezer Aouatati, who were five and four-star players respectively. That's insane. And it's damn fine work by this coaching staff.

[00:01:22]And oh, by the way, and this is something I'll get into in today's final segment, the adding of Cesay could be followed, as we've been talking about, by the snagging of another five-star in 2027 linebacker Caden Henderson. It used to be that Notre Dame would land solid, you know, solid four-star players and maybe the occasional five-star talent.

[00:01:39]And while that kept them fairly competitive under previous regimes, you never truly had the sense that there'd be sustainable national relevance as it pertained to those recruiting class rankings, if you will, the top 10s, the top 15s.

[00:01:53]That is no longer the case. Marcus Freeman's ability to get on the level of these kids while selling his program from both academic and athletic lenses is unique because it simply does not happen everywhere. You've gone from having top 10 to top 15 to top five to top three consistently the past couple of cycles.

[00:02:08]That's impressive.

[00:02:10]Look, for the 2027 group, Texas A&M's been a menace. Miami and Oklahoma have done damn fine work as well, but the Domers are knocking on the door for another coveted player in Henderson. Add him this week and this true master class, there's that term again, will continue to be on stage for all to see. It's impressive and it's not stopping anytime soon. You bring in a kid like Cisse, 13 sacks during his junior season at Downingtown East in Pennsylvania.

[00:02:38]Saw time on the offensive side of the ball at tight end, two-sport athlete basketball. So, the athletic ability just jumps off the screen. He is 6'5, 215, immensely talented, speed off the edge, power, an imposing force against the run game and he could just be a game-breaking defensive type player, especially being coached moving ahead by a guy like Charlie Partridge. Constant motor built on that rare athleticism. I mean, this is as good as it gets and as far as bringing in these monster recruits and we'll we'll talk more about that in a few moments. The Irish might not be done just yet. And it just pausing for a moment, something that is is completely significant. We've gotten into some of the details recently surrounding the Protect College Sports Act a couple times on recent episodes some of the recent news surrounding the Senate bill. Well, let's do it again. As a refresher, the key pillars of this bill include the implementation of a national standard as far as NIL is concerned while providing the NCAA with significant antitrust exemption with regard to transfer policies and eligibility while also permitting collective broadcast rights negotiations in order to protect non-revenue sports, right?

[00:03:52]The smaller ones, if you will.

[00:03:54]And restrict conference consolidation, among other things. I know it's a big word salad, but those are the the the basic major points in this. And at the present time, conferences like the SEC and Big 10 remain against the bill, while the ACC and Big 12, for example, have come out in support. The ACC appears to still be concerned with how pooling regulations would impact how they like to operate, while the Big 12 and ACC are looking to bring to an end constant realignment of these programs, which makes a lot of sense.

[00:04:24]The legislation is a positive, even if it needs a push across the proverbial goal line to be passed, which it looks like it's going to.

[00:04:31]Enter the NFL, its players union, and the National Basketball Players Association. On a letter sent to the Senate Commerce Committee on Tuesday, those unions expressed support for the bill, which is big. Came out applauding the efforts of those involved who continue to work toward greatly improving collegiate athletics. And they highlighted their approval for steps to guarantee NIL rights for student athletes, along with health and medical benefits. So, the players unions have seemingly aligned themselves with Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz and Washington's Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell, the two who really spearheaded this piece of legislation in a bipartisan way. And it's certainly gained traction in recent weeks with various ADs and administrators voicing their support in front of Congress. As we know, that includes Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua, who was on Capitol Hill just days ago doing exactly that. So, while there does seem to be a bit of momentum here, unfortunately, there are still different US senators in opposition of the bill. Add in the fact that the SEC and the Big 10, as we know, major players in the landscape of this whole thing, and it creates a massive hill to climb before Cruz, Cantwell, their constituents can get this accomplished.

[00:05:44]I don't know that it'll ultimately get passed as written, but the fact that leagues like the NBA, the NFL, you can include the US Olympic Committee and Paralympic Committees, uh they're publicly behind it as well. That's a massive step in the right direction. Uh but to get some backing again for this uh Protect College Sports Act, which I mean, from where I am sitting and what does that mean? But, you know, not much, makes a ton of sense.

[00:06:08]Sure. Are areas going to have to be reworked to have some compromise? It It's funny to say you you support um a lot of what is doled out in this piece of legislation, and then that word compromise, which doesn't always seem to happen uh with the NCAA and many of these programs on on different levels of sports and different levels of of competition. Um so, it's almost ironic in a way that you're saying these these different groups have to compromise, but that's what's going to need to happen.

[00:06:36]And I think this is something that makes loads of sense, and I personally would be in support of because, as we know and Peavy said, you know, protecting that term student athlete is of utmost important uh importance and protecting the integrity of these sports is as well while maintaining, you know, positive GPAs in the classroom and their pursuing of those degrees. So, you know, something like this is priding itself on helping do just that while getting the portal and NIL under control because I think we would all agree that they are out of control. So, this is a massive step, but with so much of these things, we're just going to have to wait and see um because again, I I think it's going to need a little bit more pushing here uh before this is something that gets pushed through, if you will. But, it's a positive thing to have the backing of the US Olympic Committee, Paralympics, and now the NBA and the NFL. You Perhaps there's somewhere out there where you can get the NHL and MLB involved, where you'd have the four major sports, not to mention the Olympics Committees uh behind you.

[00:07:40]But, a lot of this is going to boil down to the input and the feedback and the desires of the SEC and the Big 10. Right now, not seeing eye to eye.

[00:07:52]Today's freshman profile now as we focus in on wide receiver Brayden Robinson, out for the duration of spring ball as he recovered from an ACL injury suffered during his senior season at Red Oak High in Texas. Robinson's looking to put his initial footprint on the program during summer and fall ball. And And he was the type of player on the high school level and was recruited as such who really possesses elite speed, athleticism, and is the type of player who can burn the opposition in the slot and as a kick and punt returner. A bit underrated in the eyes of many during that recruitment, including yours truly. Robinson, when healthy, does have the ability to add a uniquely dangerous layer to Mike Denbrock's offense. Part of that massive 26 wide receiver haul, he's here for a reason. There is a bright future.

[00:08:38]Four-star prospect coming out of prep ball, Robinson was a three-time all-district player in Texas while excelling on the track. State champ 4 by 100 relay. Uh and he holds a record time in the 4 by 100 at Red Oak. Simply at the top of his class with regard to athletics across the board. He's also, by the way, the leading receiver in Red Oak football program history. The versatility he brings as a receiver, you see the numbers on the screen, coupled with a knack for the explosive play makes him a luxury. Academically, he was an honor roll student. So, he's another student-athlete here who fits the mold from that academic and athletic combination.

[00:09:16]There's going to be a big-time role for Brayden Robinson in the offense. Make no mistake about that. And as he rebounds from the ACL injury and works his way into reps, we'll finally have a chance to see what makes this young man so special from a football perspective because when they came out and announced prior to spring that he would be missing spring ball to to repair that injured ACL, the hope was that he'd be ready to roll somewhere around July. And the prognosis was that 100% recovery. They were on the road there, which is great news. Now you just sort of wait to say, "Okay, let's see what he can do on the field." We've seen some really good things from um Faizon, and obviously Devin Fitzgerald, Bubba Frazier. Uh so, a lot of the guys in this class have already had their uh moments, if you will, in spring ball.

[00:10:01]Now, as we get into the summer, through the summer, into fall ball, we'll start to see that more collectively and see how these guys slot in on the depth chart. I think Braden Robinson is in the mix there as well, because again, the type of athlete athlete that he is, much like a Frazier, you can use him in different packages. And if he's full go, I mean, you can't ignore that speed. And and the numbers that he put up at Red Oak, over almost 230 catches, 3,300-plus yards across four seasons, 40 touchdowns, 37 as a receiver, three as a punt and kick returner. I I mean, true game-breaking speedster. Unreal athleticism. And again, he's underrated as a recruit, but it doesn't matter now, because he's with the program and he's another one of these freshmen who can absolutely impact the depth chart and become a matchup nightmare for the opposition's defense. And a couple of visit dates now as we wrap up today's program, specifically involving two primary targets who announced changes to their commitment decisions. Caden Henderson, there's that name again, five-star linebacker, moved his decision up about two weeks to June 18th. It was originally July 1. He's choosing now between Texas A&M, who's been on a heater as well in the in the '27 class, LSU, and obviously the Irish. But a lot of people in recent time feeling very good about Notre Dame. So, Henderson, you probably read this already when it came out, moving his decision up uh from July 1st to later today, Thursday, June 18th. Julius Jones Jr., four-star wide receiver and legacy, moved his commitment date forward to June 21st. He'll actually do this, not the first time a Notre Dame prospective commit has done this. He's going to announce his decision live on the Pat McAfee Show on ESPN that day, and he's down to Notre Dame and Miami with again Notre Dame feeling very good about this one as well. And you know, Jones Jr., the difference programs that he's been kicking the tires around. I think he'll like the feel of both of these. You could consider yourself maybe sort of late to the party here with Henderson, but given with a lot of the recruiting wins Notre Dame has had, I mean Cayden Henderson would would make you instantaneously, along with CeeDee coming in, you know, make you make you quickly delete and forget some of the perceived losses Notre Dame had, if you will, including most recently linebacker Amari Irvine.

[00:12:19]So, I think you're looking good here, looking forward to these visits again.

[00:12:22]Cayden Henderson later today, June 18th, July's Jones June 21st. And these are, you know, these are the type of players that you want in that program.

[00:12:33]Again, with what Notre Dame did in the 26 group at wide receiver, looking to bring in another four-star from Aquinas in the 5'10" 175-lb Jones Jr.

[00:12:41]Notre Dame has been at the top of the list for some time now, and then you look at a kid like Henderson, set to announce the 18th later today. A&M, LSU, Notre Dame, program after program after program, but the Irish looking very good here for another five-star at a position of need and a position of desire, that linebacker position. They've bulked up in the trenches. Now they're looking to do the same on the second level of that defense. The the Tampa Jesuit kid, Henderson would do just that. So, on that note, I hope you all have a great rest of your day. We'll cap the week tomorrow, and as always, go Irish.