Notre Dame may have a new target in its search for tall cornerbacks.
Tallahassee, Fla., cornerback TJ Davis (Godby High School) cut his list of more than 20 scholarships down to 14 earlier this month and he has trimmed the list even further now.
“I’ve narrowed it down to eight,” the 6-foot-1, 180-pound corner said. “I don’t have it in order yet, but it’s Alabama, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Miami, TCU, Auburn, Florida State and Florida.”
Davis plans to narrow his list even more in the coming months.
“By the end of the summer, I’ll have a top five,” he said. “I’ll probably take three officials, but if I know it’s right, I’ll go ahead and commit.”
There were reports of Davis having a top three that didn’t include the Irish, but he called those “inaccurate.” In fact, Notre Dame is in as good a position as anyone.
“I’m pretty sure that Notre Dame will be in the top five because right now if I had a school to go to right now, Notre Dame would be number one.”
Davis, a teammate of former tight end target Laith Harlow, said each of the schools on his list has its own tradition among other qualities.
“Some of them have early playing time and some of them I’ll probably have to go in and redshirt for a year, but it’s a great immediate impact for me,” he said. “Some of them, it’s just the league that they’re in, like the SEC, I love the SEC. The ACC is more of a passing league, so I like that too.”
Notre Dame obviously stands out to the four-star corner for different reasons.
“The tradition of the place and a great coaching staff,” said Davis. “Me and Coach (Tim) Hinton talk from time to time and he’s always genuine. There’s an opportunity to get a great education there and leave with a Notre Dame degree. Also, there’s the possibility to play for a national championship, just everything really.”
Davis has already seen a few schools on his list.
“I’ve visited Alabama, Auburn and Miami,” said Davis. “I’ll be at Alabama in July some time and I’m trying to get out to Notre Dame.”
He definitely plans on seeing Notre Dame at some point.
“I know I’m taking an official to the USC game,” he said. “I’m not sure if I’m taking an unofficial.”
He knows the factors he’ll be looking for in a school.
“The environment, of course, the way the coaches interact with the players, I want it to be a family atmosphere, the education and the way they play defense,” he said. “I like aggressive defenses.”
