Notre Dame signee Jerome Bettis Jr.: "I can create my own legacy"

Atlanta Woodward Academy wide receiver Jerome Bettis Jr. had scholarship offers from the likes of Arkansas, Georgia Tech, Missouri, Notre Dame, Ole Miss and Texas A&M, but with that first and last name, he was destined to choose the Fighting Irish.

But just because a player is a Notre Dame legacy, doesn’t mean it’s a lock they’ll end up playing for their father’s alma mater. Sometimes a young man doesn’t want to follow in their old man’s footsteps.

For Bettis, though, it was all about how well Notre Dame fit him personally at the end of the day.

“As a kid being around Notre Dame so much, it was always on my mind as I was considering schools I’d want to go to,” Bettis explained. “But what really made Notre Dame the clear-cut choice for me was the values that I learned as a kid from my parents — education being so important to us as a family. That narrowed down the list. It made it an easier decision for me; I obviously wanted a school with a great football program but also on top of that is a great school.

“But with my dad graduating from there, that wasn’t necessarily something that affected me. I know that I can create my own legacy and journey.”

Bettis committed to Notre Dame back in March and officially became a member of the Fighting Irish football team on National Signing Day Dec. 4. He will enroll at the university in January, and one of his peers at the school will be his older sister, Jada, who is working with the football team.

“It’s so crazy,” Bettis responded when asked if it’s hit him that he’ll be a part of the team in a few short weeks. “When you’re watching it on the TV screen, it looks so distant. But in reality, it’s not long until it’s me out there on that field. I’m very excited, blessed and grateful for it all. It’s awesome to think that I’m going to be wearing that gold helmet soon.”

Bettis posts strong senior season

The 6-3, 185-pounder nearly doubled his production in both receiving yards and touchdowns from his junior to senior campaigns. In 2024, he hauled in 36 receptions for 630 yards with 7 touchdowns.

And he made plays on the defensive side of the ball, recording 47 tackles (38 solo), 1 stop for loss, 1 pass breakup, 2 interceptions and 2 forced fumbles.

“I’ve made some sizable improvements in certain areas of my game,” Bettis said. “The main one for me was speed. I went into the summer wanting to get faster, and it’s showing up on film. That’s one of the biggest differences in my tape from last year to this year. I knew that was a big thing for me to take my game to the next level for when I get up to Notre Dame. That’s definitely improved.

“I’ve become more instinctive as I’m out there — on offense and defense. That split-second hesitation that I may have had last year is gone now.”

Bettis has the ability and versatility to potentially move over to defense for the next level, but the talk to this point between he and the Irish staff has been about wide receiver.

“They haven’t talked to me about that, but I’m sure if that was a conversation to arise, I wouldn’t say that I’m strictly a receiver,” Bettis noted. “I understand that they have a reputation of producing some great safeties — especially one who used to be a receiver in Xavier Watts. But we do have great safeties in my class already, though.”

Down the line, Bettis may be catching passes from Greenwich (Conn.) Brunswick School quarterback Blake Hebert, who flipped from Clemson to Notre Dame in October.

“The moment I heard about it, I watched his tape. He looks really good,” Hebert said. “It surprised me how athletic he is. It’s not a surprise that any quarterback we’re going after can sling it, and Blake can definitely do that. But I wasn’t expecting that speed out of him. That threw me off. He looks good!”

Bettis ranks as the No. 867 overall player and No. 139 overall player in America according to the 2025 On3 Industry Ranking.