Notre Dame hosts intriguing 2025 WR for visit
Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas class of 2025 wide receiver Branden Hoch is the perfect example of a late riser in the recruiting process.
It wasn’t until Jan. 19, 2024 that he’d earn his first scholarship offer, and it came in impressive fashion. The nearby Miami Hurricanes were the first school to dish out an offer to him, and the likes of West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Auburn and Ole Miss have followed suit since.
His rise has caught Notre Dame’s attention, and the Fighting Irish invited him up for a spring practice. The 6-3, 195-pounder got up to South Bend April 3 and raved about the experience.
“Amazing — it opened up my eyes to see all the history that Notre Dame has and it was way better than I could’ve ever imagined it to be,” Hoch told Blue & Gold. “The campus was very impressive to me. I got to tour the campus, facilities and stadium with my family and watch practice.”
Hoch enjoyed his conversations with head coach Marcus Freeman and wide receivers coach Mike Brown.
“I also got to attend the team meeting and the wide receiver meeting,” Hoch added. “Coach Freeman’s message to me was to keep working hard and Coach Brown’s message was he really loved my highlight film. He really liked what he saw and is excited about this upcoming season.
“It was nice that I had some time to speak with both of them after practice and that meant a lot to me. They remind a lot like my coaches at my school and made me feel comfortable and like home.”
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Notre Dame didn’t offer Hoch during the trip, and it doesn’t seem like they will in the next month. But when the staff hits the road for the spring evaluation period in May, they’ll likely see Hoch work out and could extend the news to him at that point and/or evaluate his early season tape.
“An offer from Notre Dame would definitely have me at a loss of words and would have a top spot in my recruiting process at this moment,” he said.
Hoch visits Auburn this Saturday and is looking to narrow down his recruitment to a few schools before the summer. He wants to commit by June.
Notre Dame could offer him before his commitment period, or they could always offer him later in the process and try to flip him. It’ll be interesting to see where things go from here for both parties.
