Notre Dame football misses out on a Fighting Irish legacy and priority recruit in favor of a blue blood SEC program
Notre Dame misses out on elite 2027 tight end target Seneca Driver to the Oklahoma Sooners.
Notre Dame football has made it a habit of prioritizing the sons of former NFL and Fighting Irish players. Add in the success that the program has had both recruiting and developing the tight end position, and it felt like a no-brainer that elite 2027 Danville (Ky.) Boyle County tight end Seneca Driver, whose uncle, Tony Driver, was a running back and defensive back for Notre Dame from 1997 to 2000, would be a top overall target for the team.
For a while, head coach Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame felt like the team to beat for Driver. That was, at least, until recently, anyway. Over the last several weeks, it appeared that both Kentucky and Oklahoma were starting to separate from the pack. Over the weekend, head coach Brent Venables and the Sooners came out on top, landing the talented tight end.
For Notre Dame fans who follow recruiting closely, this obviously wasn’t much of a surprise. With Driver having plans to visit South Bend again later this offseason, however, it is still a blow for those who thought the Irish could get back in it. The 2027 group of tight ends is an extremely deep and talented one, so the odds are strong that Freeman and Co. recover just fine.
It is just a bummer that Driver won’t be a part of what should be another elite 2027 recruiting haul for the Irish.
Seneca Driver’s recruiting background
Driver is considered a four-star player by all major recruiting platforms. On the 247 Sports Composite ranking, Driver is pegged as the No. 56 overall player, the No. 3 tight end, and the No. 1 player in the state of Kentucky for the 2027 recruiting class. The talented pass catcher is ranked as the No. 18 overall player on the Rivals ranking, which would earn him five-star status if things ended today.
Just like his recruiting rankings, Driver’s offer list is an elite one. Some of the top programs that have offered the Kentucky native so far include the Fighting Irish, Alabama, Ohio State, Texas, Oklahoma, Michigan, Florida, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Miami, Indiana, Auburn, Missouri, Nebraska, Kentucky, Louisville, Arkansas, South Carolina, Vanderbilt, West Virginia, Michigan State, UCLA, Wisconsin, UNC, Maryland, Cincinnati, Duke, and Purdue, among several others.
As a junior, Driver put together an outstanding season for Boyle County. The 6-6, 235-pound tight end hauled in 49 receptions for 875 yards and 11 touchdowns, an average of 17.9 yards per reception. Driver also added another three scores on the ground, while recording 67 total tackles, 10 tackles for loss, five interceptions, and three sacks on defense. He is a talented athlete with all the upside in the world.
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