Notre Dame football predicted to land a former 5-star recruit who has a chance to make up for lost time with the Fighting Irish
Notre Dame could be rewriting a past recruiting wrong with the latest expert prediction.
If you take a minute to think back to the 2023 recruiting class for Notre Dame football, they once held a commitment from defensive end Keon Keeley, arguably the best recruit in the country that year. The Florida native eventually opted to decommit and ended up with the Alabama Crimson Tide, a move that crushed the Fighting Irish fanbase at the time. Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish did everything right in that recruitment, but it just wasn’t the right time for Keeley.
It appears “that right time” could be coming quickly. Ever since the former Alabama defender entered the portal a few days ago, things have gotten increasingly serious between Notre Dame and Keeley. So much so that he already made a visit to South Bend this week, and it is the only visit that he had planned. That is obviously a very good sign when it comes to interest.
Following that return to Notre Dame, folks around the industry are beginning to favor the Fighting Irish to land Keeley. Both Steve Wiltfong and Pete Nakos from On3 have logged expert predictions for Keeley to land with Notre Dame. This would be a huge win for Notre Dame and a chance to rewrite history.
While Keeley is listed as an EDGE, his combination of size and length did allow him to play up and down the line of scrimmage for Alabama. He is a talented defensive lineman who could conceivably play inside at times as well, something he has done. The thought of how you could use Keeley on the talented Irish defensive line is pretty tantalizing for defensive coordinator Chris Ash, if they are able to close the deal in the end.
Keon Keeley’s career background
When Keeley came out of Tampa Bay (Fla.) Berkeley Prep in the 2023 recruiting class, he was considered to be arguably the top overall player in the county. On the 247 Sports Composite ranking, the Florida native ended up rated as the No. 2 overall player, the No. 1 EDGE, and the No. 1 player from the state of Florida in the class. That was fresh off a senior year where Keeley collected 23.5 tackles for loss and 19 sacks.
It shouldn’t have been much of a surprise that Keeley had a ton of options on the table. Some of his top offers at the time included the Fighting Irish, the Crimson Tide, Ohio State, Georgia, Miami, Michigan, Florida, Tennessee, Ole Miss, USC, Florida State, Arizona State, Virginia Tech, West Virginia, Georgia Tech, Pitt, UNC, Mississippi State, Kansas State, Rutgers, and UCF, among others.
In three years with Alabama, Keeley ended with 19 total tackles, three tackles for loss, three sacks, and one pass breakup. It wasn’t until late this past season, however, that Keeley was given consistent playing time. If you pop on his film against Oklahoma in the playoffs, for instance, you are going to see a player who still has a ton of talent when given opportunities.
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