Notre Dame football just got a chance with some high-priced SEC talent at a couple important positions of need
Notre Dame is set to receive a couple of very interesting transfer portal defensive linemen on Friday.
Notre Dame football recently hosted former Alabama defensive end Keon Keeley for a visit. That name should sound familiar to Fighting Irish fans, as Keeley was originally part of the 2023 class before eventually decommitting and ending up with the Crimson Tide.
Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Irish staff are now hoping to land the 6-5, 282-pound defender and try to make up for lost time, and he’s not the only former Alabama defender who will be making the trip to South Bend this week.
Previously reported by Pete Nakos from On3, former Tide defensive tackle James Smith and EDGE Qua Russaw are heading to Notre Dame on Saturday. They were both just at Ohio State for a visit.
Childhood friends and long-time teammates, Smith and Russaw are viewed as a bit of a packaged deal for a prospective team. Along with the Buckeyes, Missouri, LSU, and Tennessee are a few other programs that are in the early mix. It will be interesting to see where Notre Dame stands following the trip.
That Smith and Russaw are even making the trip says a lot. Neither felt like a realistic option when they first chose to enter the transfer portal (and might still not be). It is notable that they are considering the Fighting Irish.
Convincing them to make the trip is a nice accomplishment, but now it’s time for Freeman and Co. to impress them and see where things go after they leave.
James Smith’s career background
A dynamite interior presence, Smith was once considered to be a five-star player in the 2023 recruiting class coming out of Montgomery (Al.) Carver. The 6-3, 297-pound DT chose the Crimson Tide over a long list of offers at the time, including top programs such as Georgia, Ohio State, LSU, Michigan, Texas, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Miami, Florida, Auburn, and USC.
In three years with the Alabama program, Smith had slowly become a valuable member of its defensive line. During that stretch, he recorded 50 total tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, and three pass breakups. Smith was asked to do a lot of the dirty work for the Crimson Tide, and still has a lot of upside to tap into as a penetrator.
Qua Russaw’s career background
Russaw also played with Smith at Montgomery (Al.) Carver. While he wasn’t quite as highly rated as Smith in the 2023 class, Russaw was still considered to be a near-consensus top-100 player. The 6-2, 243-pound EDGE ended up rated as the No. 64 overall player and the No. 9 EDGE in that class. His offer list was largely the exact same as Smith’s.
After redshirting during his first season with Alabama in 2024, Russaw has been a valuable rotation player when healthy. In 22 games played, Russaw has totaled 50 combined tackles, 3.5 sacks, 2 sacks, and 2 interceptions. While Russaw isn’t a great pass rusher, he is one of the better run defenders you will find in college football.
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