Five 2024 recruits trending with Notre Dame per On3 RPM

On3 is a next-gen network in large part because of its database, which is still in its early stages but will become the one-stop shop for all Notre Dame fans.

One of the neat, early features of the On3 database is the Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM), which factors in machine learning, expert predictions, social sentiment, visits and historical trends to predict where athletes will attend college. The On3 engineering group teamed up with Spiny.ai to create the industry’s first algorithm and machine learning-based product in the recruiting media industry.

As time goes on, the RPM will have more and more data points to make it more advanced. As of now, visits prospects take and insider predictions play the biggest part in the RPM.

It’s early, but multiple high-level recruits in the 2024 class are currently trending in Notre Dame’s favor. Here is a look at five of them. Recruits are listed in no specific order.

Four-star DL Nigel Smith II

School: Melissa (Texas) High
On3 Consensus: No. 24
RPM leaders: Notre Dame 42%, Texas 42%, Rutgers 14.7%
The Skinny: Smith is currently the highest-rated player evidently leaning toward South Bend, and his home state’s most notable program is neck and neck with Notre Dame according to the RPM. The defensive end has visited both Notre Dame and Texas twice since June 2021, and Notre Dame was his first Power Five offer.

Blue & Gold recruiting insider Mike Singer’s stance: Notre Dame got in on Smith early and with a couple visits to South Bend under his belt, the Irish look good here early on. Texas will be tough to beat though.

Four-star S Peyton Woodyard

School: Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco
On3 Consensus: No. 25
RPM leaders: Notre Dame 88.3%
The Skinny: Coming in just one spot behind Smith in the 2024 On3 Consensus rankings, Woodyard is heavily trending Irish due in large part to a Notre Dame prediction added last night by Mike Singer. According to On3, Woodyard holds offers from 20 programs, including a rising hometown USC, so the prediction is anything but final. Additionally, he doesn’t hold a Clemson offer yet, but he has been very impressed with the program led by former St. John Bosco quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei.

Singer’s stance: I don’t love tossing in predictions for players who just
finished up their sophomore year, but Woodyard is an exception. He’s got all the big-time offers, so it’ll be a battle, but he’s a total Notre Dame-type kid who’s also a distant relative of Kyle Hamilton.

LB Anthony Speca

School: Pittsburgh Central Catholic
On3 Consensus: N/A
RPM leaders: Notre Dame 90.9%
The Skinny: Speca currently does not have an On3 ranking, but his latest prediction is trending in Notre Dame’s favor. He was Notre Dame’s first offer in the 2024 class, dating back to last spring, and he plans to visit South Bend again in the next few months to see how the Freeman era is coming together.

Singer’s stance: I also have an early pick in for Speca. I believe the staff
would accept his commitment if he wanted to make one this early. He comes from a profile school, is good buddies with 2022 signee Donovan Hinish and has visited campus a handful of times.

Four-star QB Julian Sayin

School: Carlsbad (Ca.) High
On3 Consensus: No. 19
RPM leaders: Florida State, Miami, Notre Dame, Oregon and Texas 17.9%
The Skinny: The RPM for the No. 2 prospect from California and the No. 3 overall quarterback in the 2024 class currently shows five schools equally at the top of Sayin’s list. History seems to be impressing Sayin, as many of the schools on his list are traditional powerhouses. When visiting South Bend, the sophomore signal caller reveled in the prestige and tradition of the Notre Dame program. Sayin has expressed interest in committing early in order to help recruit his classmates, so a decision could be coming sooner rather than later.

Singer’s stance: It’s still early and anyone’s game to land Sayin. His dad is
a Notre Dame fan, and his older brother camped for the Irish when he was a high school recruit. He’s visited a couple of times already, too.

WR Jack Ressler

School: Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei
On3 Consensus: N/A
RPM leaders: Notre Dame 45.8% and Ole Miss 45.8%
The Skinny: Like Speca, Ressler does not yet have an On3 or On3 Consensus ranking. Despite his West Coast ties, the two leaders at this point according to the RPM are much farther east. Ressler holds six offers according to On3, and the highest-profile West Coast program on the offer list at this point is Arizona State.

Singer’s stance: The Irish have a high RPM because of his visit earlier to
Notre Dame for the Purdue game in the fall. My guess is that he’ll stay on the West Coast.