Who’s left on board for Notre Dame?
After months of canvassing the country, the Notre Dame football staff can only wait to see the final outcome of its 2014 recruiting class.
Eleventh hour pitches were made on Tuesday to the recruits who had yet to decide. Now the Irish will wait by the fax machine to watch the letters-of-intent roll in on Wednesday’s national signing day.
Starting at 7 a.m. ET, the forms will start to trickle in to the Guglielmino Athletics Complex. At least 20 letters, one from each verbally committed recruit, are expected to be received by Notre Dame throughout the day. Recruits must wait until 7 a.m. in the time zone they’re sending from to finalize the process.
That haul, in addition to early-enrolled freshmen Justin Brent and Andrew Trumbetti, has earned a national recruiting ranking of No. 8 from Rivals and 247Sports.
On Wednesday, the Irish hope to finish with a flourish. Five prospects still considering the Irish have signing day announcements scheduled throughout the day. Here’s a look at who’s left on the board for Notre Dame:
•CB Terrence Alexander: The 5-foot-10, 180-pound prospect from River Ridge, La., will announce his decision on ESPNU around 10:30 a.m. He and three of his John Curtis Christian teammates are scheduled to declare their decisions on national TV.
The Irish are competing with Ole Miss and Stanford. 247Sports slates him as the No. 28 cornerback. Rivals ranks him No. 32 at the position.
•DT Courtney Garnett: Despite a verbal commitment to Oklahoma last Thursday, the 6-2, 280-pound prospect from New Orleans still has the Irish in the running. Garnett, who plans to announce his decision around noon, made an official visit to Notre Dame over the weekend.
The Sooners and Irish are in a head-to-head battle for the St. Augustine senior. 247Sports slates Garnett as the No. 61 defensive tackle. Rivals rates Garnett as a three-star prospect.
•DT Daniel Cage: After a mid-week official visit last week, the Irish have emerged as a contender for the 6-1, 310-pound prospect from Cincinnati. Cage, who plans to announce his decision around noon, appears to have narrowed his decision to Michigan State and Notre Dame.
The Winton Woods High product also visited Illinois, Louisville and Missouri in the last two months. Rivals ranks Cage as the No. 27 defensive tackle in the class. 247Sports slates him No. 42 at the position.
•S/WR John “JuJu” Smith: The 6-1, 205-pound prospect stands as the last chance for the Irish to nab another five-star recruit. The Long Beach (Calif.) Poly product will close ESPNU’s series of televised announcements at 4 p.m.
Smith’s recruitment has narrowed to a four-team race of Notre Dame, Oregon, USC and UCLA, with the Trojans emerging as late front-runners. Rivals ranks Smith as the No. 2 safety and the No. 24 recruit overall in the 2014 class. 247Sports slates him as the No. 4 athlete and No. 45 overall.
•WR Michiah Quick: Like Garnett, the decision for the 6-0, 170-pounder has pitted the Irish vs. Sooners with UCLA trying to get in the mix.
The Fresno (Calif.) Central East product plans to announce his decision at his school at 6 p.m. Rivals ranks Quick as the No. 4 athlete in the class. 247Sports slates him as the No. 8 athlete.
