Notre Dame football recruits Raridon, Mickey big movers in latest Rivals rankings

As new Notre Dame head football coach Marcus Freeman looks to add to the 2022 Irish recruiting class in the next week before the early signing period, a handful of existing committed prospects received a ratings bump.

Tight end Eli Raridon and cornerback Jaden Mickey were the biggest upward movers in ND’s class in the latest Rivals.com 250, released Tuesday. Raridon — a tight end from Valley High in West Des Moines, Iowa — jumped from outside the top 250 nationally to No. 177.

Mickey, a cornerback from Corona (Calif.) Centennial High, also came from outside the top 250. He’s now No. 180 overall.

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Thirteen of the 22 players in the class are in the new top 250, collectively ranked as the No. 4 class nationally behind Georgia, Alabama and Texas A&M. If the Irish finish in the top five, it’ll be the first time since 2013. That class featured four five-star prospects — Jaylon Smith, Greg Bryant, Max Redfield and Eddie Vanderdoes.

The early signing period for the 2022 class runs Dec. 15-17. One of the prospects ND is pursuing, Pleasant Valley, Iowa, five-star safety Xavier Nwankpa, is set to announce his college decision Wednesday at 5 p.m. ET. The No. 20 prospect overall in the 2022 class will choose between ND, Ohio State and perceived lean Iowa.

The early signing period is Dec. 15-17. Twelve of the 22 players in the class so far are expected to enroll early.

Linebacker Jaylen Sneed, from Hilton Head Island, S.C., is ND’s top-rated committed prospect at the moment, at No. 40, followed by wide receiver C.J. Williams, at 45.

Next comes defensive end Tyson Ford (104), offensive tackle Ty Chan (110), linebacker Joshua Burnham (162), wide receiver Tobias Merriweather (166) and offensive guard Joey Tanona (171).

Raridon (177), Mickey (180), offensive tackle Aamil Wagner (195), linebacker Niuafe Tuihalamaka (196), defensive end Aiden Gobaira (206) and running back Jadarian Price (237) round out the ranked ND players. 

Gobaira moved up 44 spots.

Follow ND Insider Eric Hansen on Twitter: @EHansenNDI