When his junior season started, Greg Miclisse was on the mailing list of several BCS programs, but when he sent out a tweet last month that he had talked with Notre Dame assistant coach Tony Alford, the 2014 Florida linebacker found himself on the phone with coaches from several of those programs.
“Ever since they heard about Notre Dame, every team was like, ‘We have to hop on him. We have to put him on our recruiting board,’” the 6-foot-1, 235-pounder from Bayside High School in Palm Bay, Fla., said.
Miclisse has since heard from schools like LSU, Oklahoma, Penn State, Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Tennessee, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Auburn, North Carolina, South Carolina, Wake Forest, Kentucky, Boston College, Northwestern and Duke
“They tell me on Facebook to give them a call,” he said of the college coaches. “I was talking to (LSU assistant) Coach (Adam) Henry the other day and then he transferred me to Coach Les Miles. Coach Miles said he really liked me and things like that.”
Miclisse, a huge college football and Notre Dame fan, is excited to see his recruitment start to pick up major steam.
“That’s crazy,” he said. “Like I always say, it’s blessing. That’s why I thank God for what he’s done for me. There are athletes in this world who couldn’t touch this recruiting process. I’m just blessed for everything God is doing for me.”
Miclisse finished his junior season with 66 tackles, nine sacks, 18 tackles for a loss, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. He is still waiting to hear for sure about his first offer, but believes one will come from Mississippi State, if it hasn’t already.
“I don’t know if they’ve offered me yet or not, but the coaches are like, ‘We want you to come be at our school. We want you to come be a Bulldog,’” he said. “I’m not exactly sure what that means.”
Either way, Miclisse knows the offers will be coming eventually.
“Like I said, it’s just a blessing,” he added. “Everything comes from God’s hands and God’s will. I’m just so happy and I’m just a proud athlete.”
He’s planning a quick trip to Louisiana-Lafayette next month, but his first true unofficial visit will be to the Midwest this spring.
“My first visit will be Notre Dame,” he said. “I told Coach Alford that. Alex Anzalone is going to host me on my visit to Notre Dame, it’s going to be fun.
“I want to see the atmosphere, how the coaches are, how the facilities are and the fan base. I want to see how everything is at the school.”
He has some other schools, he’d like to check out as well.
“Probably Florida, Penn State, South Carolina, Clemson, LSU and Mississippi State,” Miclisse said.
It’s still a bit early, but Miclisse has an idea of what he’s looking for in a school.
“First of all, I’m looking for academics,” he said. “I’m looking for the atmosphere, does the school feel right for me and the coaches.”
And he added he’s looking for a program that he feels like he’s needed at, not just one where he’s wanted.
The lifelong Irish fan will be rooting hard for Notre Dame in the BCS National Championship Game.
“Definitely.”
