“I’ve been receiving some mail from Notre Dame about their camp and stuff like that,” 2013 safety prospect Su’a Cravens said. “I know that their linebacker, Manti Te’o, is cousins with the Cravens, and even though I’m from California, I’m going to consider all the schools around the nation.”
The 6-foot-1, 205-pound Cravens, from Murrieta, Calif., (Valley Murrieta), is receiving plenty of interest and already has some BCS offers.
“I’m up to six offers right now,” claimed Cravens. “The schools that have offered me are Oklahoma, Washington, UCLA, Hawaii, Colorado and Arizona. There are also a lot of other schools showing me a lot of interest.”
Notre Dame is one the programs showing recent interest.
“I’ve grown up a USC fan, so I’ve always been able to watch Notre Dame,” explained the sophomore. “They’ve always have had some great players and last year they beat USC. That got me to thinking that Notre Dame is starting to move their way up. I really never thought much about them until last year and now that recruiting is picking up I’m definitely going to consider them. I really would like to get up there and visit.”
Cravens could end up at either safety or linebacker at the next level.
“It’s about half-and-half,” he said. “Some schools want me at linebacker and others want me at safety. It just all depends on how big I get. I do kind of prefer safety because I can move around a lot more, but linebacker can be fun to coming up and blitzing off the edge.”
Cravens had 98 tackles, eight sacks, five forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries as a sophomore.
“I’m not a real loud player, but I’m a player that’s consistent,” he said. “I just fly around the field doing my job. I always have my head in the game.”
Depth chart will be a major factor when it comes time for the youngster to make a decision.
“When I look at these schools I’m going to be looking at their rosters,” claimed the California standout. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not afraid of competition, but if a school has offered three kids at your position and another have only offered one, you have to kind of look at things like that.”
DESTEFANO TO DECIDE: South Carolina offensive lineman Patrick Destefano was a hot name on the Notre Dame recruiting radar a couple of months ago until it was revealed that he didn’t hold an offer from the Irish when he was under the impression he did. The 6-foot-4, 275-pounder has moved on with his recruitment and, despite a hip flexor that nagged him throughout spring practice, is feeling pretty good.
“The month of May has been great,” Destefano said. “It’s definitely one I’ll look back on for the rest of my life because on Monday at 3 o’clock, I’ll be committing to a school.
“I’ve been so fortunate that my parents have allowed me to see all of my options and I just found one that I think is home and where my future football family can be.”
Destefano feels comfortable with the players, coaches, offense and the school at the program he’s going top choose. “It’s everything I’ll ever need,” he said.
WHAT WE’RE HEARING: The Irish certainly aren’t backing off any prospects who have offered verbal commitments elsewhere. A new offer is about to go out to a five-star defensive lineman who recently committed to a “rival.” Also hearing a talented offensive lineman who is currently committed elsewhere is making plans to be in South Bend this summer.
Denver quarterback Cyler Miles is planning to announce his decision within the next couple of weeks. It was reported a while back that Miles had been offered by the Irish, but that is not true, and the Irish are not an option for the talented dual-threat signal-caller.
Mark Harrell’s commitment took the Irish from a precarious position with offensive line recruiting to a position of strength. Expect Notre Dame to be very selective with its remaining offensive line spots.
Sounds like Destefano is going to pick an in-state school.
The Irish could be working themselves into the mix with a four-star safety from Terrelle Pryor’s old high school.
Could Notre Dame already have a quarterback in its 2012 class? Check back Sunday for more.
FORMER ND PLAYER IN THE BUSINESS: Former Irish cornerback Preston Jackson is running the website BigCountyPreps.com, which is devoted to football and football recruiting in the Tampa Bay area.
He recently had a post on the Irish’s 2013 recruiting efforts down in Tampa:
“Notre Dame football is making an early push in Tampa, in an effort to attract some young prospects, something that the Irish have not done a very good job of in years past. Hillsborough DE Jordan Sherit; Jesuit WR Travis Johnson; Middleton athlete Richard Benjamin and Armwood S Leon McQuay have all perked the ears and opened the eyes of the Notre Dame recruiting staff. From my ND contact, 2012 Alonso WR/RB Brandon Holloway’s speed is very impressive and they are definitely going to recruit him. At this point, I am not sure verbal offers are on the way, but these kids will be on the Notre Dame recruiting board.”
2013 WR LIKES ND: It’s still early, but 2013 wide receiver Drew Wolitarsky (Canyon Country, Calif./Canyon High School) is already receiving some interest from colleges. San Jose State and Arizona State were by the 6-foot-2, 190-pounder’s practice this spring while Washington, Washington State, UCLA and Boise State have been by in the past. Wolitarsky is also receiving mail from Oregon and Notre Dame.
The materials he’s receiving from the Irish have caught his eye.
“I’d love to go check out the campus,” he said. “First of all, it looks really nice from the brochures they’ve sent. My dad used to be a Trojan and it’s a huge rivalry. He said it’s just awesome to be part of it. I’ve heard a lot of great things about it from my coaches.”
Wolitarsky’s brother is headed to UCLA to run track, so his father wouldn’t get in the way of him attending Notre Dame. “We’ve already broken his heart,” Wolitarsky laughed.
Wolitarsky doesn’t have any plans to visit South Bend yet, but said he’d like to attend a camp and would talk to his father about that.
Wolitarsky, who runs a 11.0 in the 100-meter dash and 4.65 in the 40-yard dash, caught 77 passes for 1,472 yards and 13 touchdowns as a sophomore.
“I have great hands, I can catch,” he said. All last year, my coach and I worked on routes, just different stuff you can give DBs so you can trick them. The basic, generic routes, he said they’re not going to work in college.”
He’s got an idea of what he’s looking for in a system.
“I want an offense that resembles an NFL offense,” he said. “I don’t want to go to a team where they use the quarterback more than the receivers. I don’t want like a Pistol offense. That’s a lot of it and also the coaches. I want a coach that’ll push me, but won’t break me down.”
