Four-star LB Anthony Sacca commits to Notre Dame football

Philadelphia St. Joseph’s Prep linebacker Anthony Sacca is the latest prospect to join Notre Dame and Marcus Freeman’s 2025 recruiting class. The four-star prospect announced his commitment to the Fighting Irish over Alabama, Duke, Ohio State and Wisconsin Saturday afternoon.

The son of former Penn State quarterback Tony Sacca (1988-91) received his offer from the Fighting Irish in December 2021, the same month that Freeman became Notre Dame’s new head coach. It only took two visits to South Bend for the 6-2 1/2, 225-pounder to commit to the Irish. He visited for the Blue-Gold Game last spring and was back on campus for the Ohio State game.

Sacca took a pragmatic approach to his recruiting process. After talking things over with his family and high school coaches, they decided earlier this week that Notre Dame would be the best place for him.

“My dad told me to go where I’m wanted and where I feel most comfortable, and those were two big things for me,” Sacca told Blue & Gold. “All of these schools were great options; there was no bad decision. You have to go with the best decision for yourself.

“Over the past couple of years, I’ve built a strong relationship with Coach [Al] Golden, and he and my dad have known each other for a long time. I’ve gotten to know him, and our relationship has trust. He was a straight shooter with me the entire way. He’s told me how I’d fit in and their plans for me.

“Talking to Coach Freeman on my visits and over the phone — Notre Dame was one of the most consistent schools throughout my recruitment.”

Sacca ranks as the nation’s No. 225 overall player and No. 27 linebacker according to the 2025 On3 Industry Ranking. He’s also the No. 8 recruit in Pennsylvania.

Notre Dame now has 19 verbals with Sacca’s pledge and three linebackers locked in. The other two are Elmhurst (Ill.) Immaculate Conception’s Dominik Hulak and Honolulu Punahou’s Ko’o Kia.

The following schools were not on Sacca’s list of finalists. Still, they offered him a scholarship during his recruiting process: Georgia, Florida State, Miami, Michigan, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas A&M and USC. He had over 20 scholarship offers.

Sacca goes in depth on his Notre Dame commitment

He had an early April trip to Alabama planned. Then, it was going to be visits to Notre Dame, Ohio State and Wisconsin later in the spring. Sacca was going to stretch his recruitment out a bit longer, but this past weekend, he and his inner circle talked things over, and on Monday morning, they decided to pick the Fighting Irish.

“I’ve seen mostly everything from the schools, honestly,” said Sacca. “I didn’t need to see much more and sit down with coaches and hear their pitch.”

Sacca makes a good point. Sacca has been through the process for quite some time as someone who received his first offer (Temple) during his freshman season. He visited the schools he wanted to see and built strong relationships—some of which have lasted years at this point.

Take Notre Dame’s Golden, for example. The veteran coach joined the Irish staff as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach in February 2022 and had an immediate “in” with Sacca. Golden played with Anthony’s father at Penn State. Longtime Irish fans may remember Sacca connecting with Golden, a tight end for the Nittany Lions, for a touchdown when Penn State upset the Irish in 1990.

But that’s all in the past now. Golden is Irish, and so is Tony Sacca’s son.

The young Sacca informed Golden of his decision to commit Monday evening. Golden was about to have dinner with a recruit visiting campus when he got the call from Sacca.

“He was surprised; they weren’t expecting it to be this soon,” noted Sacca. “They thought it’d be further down the road when I’d make a decision.

“I talked to Chad Bowden after I talked to Coach Golden, and then I got on the phone with Coach Freeman and Coach [Max] Bullough over the next couple of days.”

Sacca gave more insight into how his recruiting process went down the stretch.

“It was a Notre Dame-Ohio State battle for a long time, going back and forth with them,” he explained. “And then Alabama came on late in January when Coach [Colin] Hitschler got the job. So, it was about where I wanted to be and where I’ve built the best relationships. That’s what it came down to.”

The rising senior linebacker will enroll at Notre Dame next summer. He’s ready to compete to get on the field as soon as he can in the blue and gold.

“I’m looking to compete at the highest level every single day,” he explained. “I want to be surrounded by people who have the same values as me. At Notre Dame, it’s unique because you get that great education and high-level football that you can’t find at most places. Every kid wants to play in the NFL, and I think I have a shot at it. I can get a really good degree here and have a chance to play at the next level.”

The Anthony Sacca file

Sacca posted 67 tackles and 2 interceptions during his junior season, during which St. Joseph Prep had a 13-1 record and captured a second-straight Pennsylvania 6A state title. His team’s only loss on the year was a season-opening setback against Bradenton (Fla) IMG Academy, 17-14. St. Joseph Prep finished the season No. 8 in the MaxPreps national top 25.

He earned 2023 MaxPreps High School Football Junior All-America second-team honors.

As a sophomore, Sacca recorded 50 tackles, 1 sack, 1 interception, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovered. He was named to the 2023 and 2022 Pa. Football Writers’ Class 6A All-State Team.

The elder Sacca was drafted in the second round of the 1992 NFL Draft by the Phoenix Cardinals. After a short stint in the NFL, Sacca played overseas for a couple of seasons with the Barcelona Dragons in Spain.