2024 vyper Cole Mullins commits to Notre Dame football

Notre Dame has earned a new commitment in the 2024 recruiting class, coming from Hoschton (Ga.) Mill Creek class of 2024 pass rusher Cole Mullins.

The 6-4, 240-pounder visited Notre Dame this past Wednesday and didn’t waste much time making his decision to commit to the Fighting Irish. He becomes Notre Dame’s 10th pledge of the 2024 cycle.

“The history there and education — what Notre Dame can provide for you after football,” Mullins told Blue & Gold. “It has the best football with the education you can get.”

Mullins gives the Irish two defensive line commitments in the 2024 cycle, joining Princeton (N.J.) The Hun School interior lineman Owen Wafle. And Notre Dame already has an interior defensive line commit in the 2025 class, as Miami Belen Jesuit Prep’s Davion Dixon pledged to the Irish on Friday night.

On3 ranks Mullins as a three-star linebacker and the No. 77 player at that position in America. He does play inside ‘backer at the high school level, but he’s expected to play vyper at Notre Dame.

Miami, USC, Stanford, North Carolina, Kentucky, Wake Forest, Duke, Georgia Tech and Pittsburgh are among the other programs that offered Mullins a scholarship during his recruiting process.

Each one of those offers came after his junior football season started. By the end of it, he had 58 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 6 sacks, 6 quarterback hurries and 2 pass breakups in 15 games. 

“It’s a great fit,” Mill Creek head coach Josh Lovelady said of his player’s commitment. “The blend is something he’s looked for in filtering his offers he’s had. Notre Dame is obviously a very high academic school that does a great job blending that with a very high level of football, too.”

Mullins’ visit earlier this week was his first in South Bend.

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More on Cole Mullins’ Notre Dame commitment

The Irish staff extended the offer to Mullins Jan. 19, and both parties kept in consistent contact between the time of the offer and visit. He speaks regularly with defensive line coach Al Washington and defensive line assistant Nick Sebastian.

“He kept telling me how I’m wanted there, how good the football and education is there and they have it all there,” Mullins said of Washington’s communication with him.

Going into his April 19 trip to Notre Dame, Mullins wanted to see what the Notre Dame coaches were like in practice and learn more about the business school. Those boxes were checked and then some.

“Coach Washington is a really good coach,” Mullins said. “I like what he does and how he treats his players. He’s very energetic. He’ll get on his players, which I like.”

It was his first time meeting the second-year Irish defensive line coach.

“It was great,” Mullins said of spending time with Washington. “It was the same as he is on the phone. He’s very calm until practice.”

Mullins had conversations with defensive coordinator Al Golden as well.

“I really liked him; he’s great,” said Mullins. “We didn’t talk too much about football. It was more about the school and education — things outside of football.”

And of course, Mullins chatted with head coach Marcus Freeman.

“You can tell how smart he is, and he cares about his players,” said Mullins. “He’s great to talk with.”

He made the trip with his parents and brother, who fully support him playing a bit farther from home. There are direct flights from Atlanta to South Bend, which makes travel much easier.

It came down to Notre Dame, Duke and Wake Forest for Mullins; it’s clear that Mullins is an outstanding student and education is important to him.

“It definitely played a role,” he said of academics. “I’m more focused on football, but having the education really helps with the decision.”

Mullins is a first baseman on the Mill Creek baseball team.

His father, Pat, played quarterback at Utah State in the mid 1990s. He completed 287 of 517 passes for 3,759 yards with 19 touchdowns and 25 interceptions in two seasons. His mother, Suzette, ran track at Utah State.