Notre Dame football needs to be all in on one particular Spring Transfer Portal addition
In the wonderful world of the Transfer Portal, there is always an opportunity to find and acquire talent to improve your favorite college football team. For the Notre Dame program under head coach Marcus Freeman, they are intent on consistently building through high school recruiting. That is the main roster ideology. The Fighting Irish, however, […]
In the wonderful world of the Transfer Portal, there is always an opportunity to find and acquire talent to improve your favorite college football team. For the Notre Dame program under head coach Marcus Freeman, they are intent on consistently building through high school recruiting. That is the main roster ideology.
The Fighting Irish, however, have shown that they are more than willing to explore portal options if the fit makes sense. Players like Riley Leonard, Javontae Jean-Baptiste, and Jordan Clark are some recent success stories for the program. Finding those right fits can help to take a good roster over the top.
With the recent termination of Stanford head coach Troy Taylor, parts of the Cardinal roster are going to be exploring other options. That includes star pass rusher David Bailey, who entered on Friday. Bailey is a player who isn’t unfamiliar with the Notre Dame program.
Originally a member of the 2022 recruiting class, Bailey did hold an offer from Notre Dame, and he was a player that they pushed for. The Mater Dei standout also held offers from Alabama, Michigan, Oregon, LSU, Oklahoma, and USC among several others. 247Sports had him rated as the No. 34 overall player in the entire class.
While Bailey was a part of a struggling Stanford program, Bailey made his impact known consistently. The 6-3, 250-pound pass rusher was able to record 111 total tackles, 22.5 tackles for loss, and 14.5 sacks in three seasons. Bailey also managed to record seven forced fumbles.
With both Boubacar Traore and Jordan Botelho returning from injury, and timelines unclear, the Vyper position is a little thin. Add in the fact that Loghan Thomas is weighing at just 213 pounds right now, and that position has a ton of upside but substantial uncertainty as well.
Someone like Bailey would help to solve that issue, and quickly. But what happens if both Botelho and Traore are healthy? Then you have one of the deepest EDGE depth charts you have had, ever. You can never have enough pass rushers, especially when the playoffs come around.
Bailey is obviously a high academic kid, and has a previous relationship with Coach Freeman. With only one year of eligibility remaining, it makes sense for Bailey to seek out a real contender that can help prepare him for the NFL. The fit just makes too much sense.
If you’re Notre Dame, go get David Bailey. He’s the type of talent that could help take you over the top.