Notre Dame commit recap: Kyle Hamilton excels on special teams
Between last Thursday and Saturday, 17 Notre Dame commits combined for 16 touchdowns. ND Insider recaps how each pledge fared.
• 2019 S Kyle Hamilton | Atlanta Marist 33, Baylor (Tenn.) 14: Baylor felt Hamilton’s presence on special teams. Late in the second quarter, Hamilton blocked a 43-yard field goal and returned it 67 yards for a score.
The War Eagles (2-0) opened the second half with a Hamilton 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. He finished with 210 return yards and two catches for 30 yards.
Don’t kick it to @kham316pic.twitter.com/HUZ3z85hfh
— Derrek Hamilton (@hoops527dh) September 1, 2018
• 2019 DE NaNa Osafo-Mensah | Fort Worth (Texas) Nolan Catholic 29, Houston Kinkaid 6: The Fort Worth Star-Telegram named Osafo-Mensah the Defensive Player of the Game, and deservedly so. He recorded five tackles, one sack, one TFL and three quarterback pressures. Thanks to Osafo-Mensah, the Vikings (1-0) pitched a first half shutout.
• 2019 RB Kyren Williams | Kirkwood (Mo.) St. John Vianney 63, Althoff Catholic 17: Williams increased his season touchdown total to six with a pair of scores. After a blitzing Williams strip-sacked Althoff Catholic’s quarterback, Williams returned it 30 yards for his first defensive touchdown on the year.
2019 Notre Dame commit @Kyrensiren has scored 6 TDs in his first 2 games. One of his TDs last week came on a 30-yard scoop and score (h/t @GriffinsTV_Live). pic.twitter.com/TBVUuZXe9o
— Carter Karels (@CarterKarels) September 3, 2018
The Golden Griffiths (1-1) scored first when Williams took a slant 42 yards for a touchdown. Last week, Williams recorded 266 total yards and four touchdowns.
• 2019 QB Brendon Clark | Midlothian (Va.) Manchester 75, Riverbend 0: The Lancers (1-0) led 61-0 at halftime, sending Clark to the bench for most of the game. In limited action, Clark went for 131 yards and three touchdowns on 12-of-15 passing.
He began the game with an 8-yard touchdown pass to receiver Kevin Henderson. Clark also connected with Kei’Trel Clark for a 25-yard touchdown and Zachary Bowman on a 3-yard score.
Manchester romp to huge win over Riverbend @lancer_footbal@CBS6#FSFCBS6https://t.co/CkanpH1Gz6pic.twitter.com/Jyn9lqSng1
— Lane Casadonte (@LaneCtvsports) September 1, 2018
• 2019 LB Jack Kiser | Royal Center (Ind.) Pioneer 66, LaVille 19: Like Williams, Kiser has been a touchdown machine. His five touchdowns last Friday brings him to 11 across three games. It also helped the Panthers (3-0) overcome an early 13-8 deficit.
Two of Kiser’s touchdowns came on quarterback powers from 45 yards and 17 yards. Kiser also kept it on a zone read for a 10-yard score. Running back Ezra Lewellan hauled in Kiser’s lone touchdown pass of 34 yards. Kiser finished with a 77.8 completion percentage and 83 yards through the air.
Kiser’s fourth interception of the season was housed for a 46-yard touchdown. Lining up at safety, Kiser high-pointed a pass floated high in the air 20 yards down the field. He also registered 11 tackles.
• 2019 P Jay Bramblett | Tuscaloosa (Ala.) Hillcrest 30, Tuscaloosa County 20: Bramblett bounced back from last week’s game, throwing for 173 yards and a touchdown on 15-of-21 passing. His biggest impact for the Patriots (1-1), though, came via his specialty: punting. Bramblett’s five punts — some of which were in the rain — traveled an average of 41 yards.
Four of Bramblett’s punts were downed inside the 20. His best traveled 57 yards and was downed on the 1-yard line.
Notre Dame 2019 commit @jbram_15 averaged 41 yards across 5 punts last Friday. Four of them were downed inside the 20, and one was a 57-yarder downed at the 1 (h/t @recruitlookAL). pic.twitter.com/RNwN2Qfusa
— Carter Karels (@CarterKarels) September 3, 2018
• 2019 CB K.J. Wallace | Atlanta Lovett 43, B.E.S.T. Academy 0: Wallace made amends from last week’s loss to Hamilton’s Marist squad. He scored the game’s first points on a 2-yard rush. Wallace’s most impressive play came on his 22-yard touchdown catch in the right corner of the end zone. The one-handed diving grab handed the Lions (1-2) a 21-0 advantage.
Notre Dame 2019 commit @KJ_WALLACE_2 made his official visit last weekend. Here’s the athleticism he would bring to the Irish (via @Day1toD1). pic.twitter.com/ZYpoJG3ZcR
— Carter Karels (@CarterKarels) September 4, 2018
• 2019 DT Jacob Lacey | Bowling Green (Ky.) South Warren 36, Franklin-Simpson 14: The defensive tackle missed his previous game with a minor ankle injury. Lacey told ND Insider he could have played, and it was a precautionary measure. The extra rest allowed him to shine against Franklin-Simpson.
The Spartans (3-0) limited their opposition to just 77 total yards. Lacey collected nine tackles, four TFLs and two sacks — one of which was a strip-sack that led to his teammate returning it 50 yards for a touchdown.
• 2020 TE Michael Mayer | Park Hills (Ky.) Covington Catholic 54, Cooper 7: Mayer caught his third touchdown in two games on an acrobatic grab in double coverage. He finished with 35 yards on three receptions. The Colonels (3-0) also play Mayer at linebacker, where he registered three tackles and a sack.
Mayer only played in the first half, and lightning forced the Colonels to finish the game on Saturday. Mayer still made his unofficial visit to Notre Dame over the weekend, though.
• 2020 TE Kevin Bauman | Red Bank (N.J.) Catholic 41, St. John Vianney 14: With the victory, the Caseys (1-0) snapped St. John Vianney’s 38-game winning streak against Shore Conference teams. Bauman caught four passes for 64 yards on the night.
• 2019 WR Cam Hart | Olney (Md.) Good Counsel vs. Archbishop Spalding (no contest): A lightning delay canceled this contest with 2:57 remaining. The Falcons were tied 35-35 and remain 1-0. Hart mostly played defense and saw limited action as a receiver.
Hart earned receiving duties when his offense neared the red zone. He caught one pass for 14 yards. The weather prevented Hart from making his official visit to Notre Dame-Michigan over the weekend.
• 2019 DT Hunter Spears | Sachse (Texas) High 28, Coppell 30: Spears saw his first action since tearing his ACL in the summer of 2017. Coppell kicker Caden Davis — a three-star Texas A&M commit — spoiled Spears’ return by drilling a game-winning 57-yard field goal as time expired. Spears collected a handful of tackles and one TFL for the Mustangs (0-1).
A&M commit Caden Davis!!! 57-yarder to WIN!!!!!!! Coppell wins 30-28 over Sachse #txhsfbpic.twitter.com/n93SjiGb3M
— Justin Thomas (@JThomasSCN) September 1, 2018
• 2019 OL Andrew Kristofic | Gibsonia (Pa.) Pine-Richland 49, Hempfield Area 0: The Rams (1-1) couldn’t gain over 100 yards in their opening 42-0 loss to IMG Academy. Kristofic helped Pine-Richland bounce back by paving the way for 42 first half points.
• 2019 DE Howard Cross III | Montvale (N.J.) St. Joseph Regional 17, Plantation (Fla.) American Heritage 20: Plantation American Heritage improved to 29-0 under head coach Pat Surtain. Cross III recorded five tackles, but the Green Knights (0-1) couldn’t pull off the victory.
• 2019 OL John Olmstead | Metuchen (N.J.) St. Joseph 7, North Brunswick 9: Last Thursday’s loss snapped St. Joseph’s 19-game regular season winning streak. The Falcons (0-1) spent most of the game without their starting quarterback, Tyree Ford. He suffered an ankle injury amid St. Joseph’s second series.
• 2019 OL Zeke Correll | Cincinnati (OH) Anderson 36, Hamilton 31: Correll’s protection allowed quarterback David Thompson to throw for 458 yards and five touchdowns on 32-for-42 passing. The Redskins (2-0) trailed 31-24 but scored two touchdowns in the final seven minutes. Anderson gained just 61 yards on the ground.
• 2019 OL Quinn Carroll | Edina (Minn.) High 13, Lakeville South 8: Carroll cleared the way for the Hornets (1-0), who amassed 283 yards on the ground. Edina’s senior running back, Matt Cavanaugh, rushed for a 1-yard go-ahead touchdown with 32 seconds left. Carroll opened holes for Cavanaugh, who amassed gains of 37, 27 and 19 yards.
*Stats reported were provided by players, parents, MaxPreps and the following news organizations: Star Tribune, Courier News, Washington Post, WTVR-TV, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Journal News, Chattanooga Times Free Press, Bowling Green Daily News and Asbury Park Press.
