Notre Dame is going head-to-head with Clemson for the services of running back Will Shipley. What do the Irish have going for them and where do they have to make up ground against powerhouse Clemson?
Notre Dame was supposed to have their biggest recruiting weekend of the off-season in the middle of March but corona-virus changed those plans as the NCAA suspended all recruiting visits. Now Notre Dame appears headed to trying to make that weekend up in June, dependent on recruiting visits being OK’d by then.
Will Shipley is the biggest remaining target for not just Notre Dame but a few other teams who would love to get his commitment. We’ve told you about the relationship Shipley shares with Notre Dame commitment Blake Fisher, who also plans to be in attendance in June.
Where does Notre Dame currently stand in the running for Shipley? According to Rivals the Fighting Irish are in a very good but not great spot.
They rank Clemson first as Shipley’s likely landing spot as of now with Notre Dame second. They say of Notre Dame’s chances:
The Fighting Irish seemed to have some momentum with Shipley prior to the recruiting dead period, and expectations going into his previously planned visit were high. That visit obviously hasn’t happened, but that won’t stop Notre Dame from leaning on Shipley.
The Irish’s biggest weapon in the pursuit of Shipley is running backs coach Lance Taylor and his track record of developing outstanding running backs such as Christian McCaffrey and Bryce Love. Shipley looks up to McCaffrey, and the two talk fairly often. Turning out to be a back like McCaffrey is a dream of Shipley’s.
It seems like Notre Dame remains in really good shape here, assuming they can get Shipley on campus. He clearly has a strong relationship with Taylor as evidenced by Taylor’s regular visits to North Carolina over the winter. It’s just hard to imagine him making a commitment to Notre Dame if he can’t get back to campus for one of these massive visit weekends.
Following Clemson and Notre Dame in the Rivals projections for Shipley were North Carolina and North Carolina State. Check out the entire piece for a deeper look at what each program has going both for and against them in the running for this star running back.
