After a successful senior season for Dowling Catholic High School (West Des Moines, Iowa), Eric Lee met with some small college coaches, but decided to focus on his education over athletics and in the end, he’ll get both.
The 5-foot-9, 165-pound Lee played wide receiver, defensive back and was a member of every special team for Dowling Catholic.
On offense, Lee played receiver opposite of Amara Darboh, a 2012 prospect with an offer from Notre Dame.
“I think that’s why I got thrown to so much this year because everyone was playing for Amara,” Lee admitted. “That kind of opened things up for me. He’s a great player to have on your team.”
“Eric is a great player,” Darboh said. “He’s a hard worker, he played both sides of the ball last year for us. He doesn’t get tired. I don’t think he ever got off the field.”
Lee caught more than 40 passes for 11 touchdowns, scored another couple of touchdowns on special teams and had six interceptions as the Maroons captured a state title.
“I played both ways this year and every special teams too, so I had to be in pretty good shape,” said Lee.
When deciding on a college, one caught Lee’s eye early on.
“I’ve always thought about going to Notre Dame just because of the school,” said Lee. “I like the academic aspect of it, just being a very prestigious school. I got interested a couple of years ago, but I wouldn’t say I was a Notre Dame fan when I was little.”
When Lee got accepted to Notre Dame, Darboh was excited and a member of the Dowling Catholic coaching staff sent Lee’s information and film to the Irish staff. After evaluating Lee as a prospect, the Irish decided to invite him on the team as a preferred walk-on.
“I know it’s going to take a lot of hard work for everything,” said Lee, who hopes to play slot receiver for the Irish. “I’m prepared to work hard and know my role on the team going in. The bottom line is it’s going to take a lot of hard work.”
Darboh has said having Lee in South Bend will make him more comfortable with Notre Dame as a potential destination.
“He’s a great player and he’s also a great person,” said Darboh. “We’re friends through sports, but we also hang out outside of sports.”
“Me and Amara are pretty tight,” Lee said. “The past three years of being in high school, I’d say we’re pretty good friends. It’s kind of cool that I’m going there now and he’s obviously thinking about going there next year. It’s pretty cool.”
Lee hasn’t been on Notre Dame’s campus yet, but that’ll change in two weeks when he goes to the Irish spring game on April 16th with his parents and Darboh.
“I’m pumped,” said Lee. “I can’t wait to get up there and see it and see the football aspect of it too. It’s going to be fun.”
Lee acknowledged he isn’t able to offer Darboh too much information on Notre Dame yet because Darboh has already been there three times.
“I guess when the season starts and I get the hang of things and see the school aspect, I’ll be able to give him some more insight about what it’ll be like.”
