What Notre Dame QB commit Deuce Knight told on On3’s JD Pickell during On3 Elite Series event

While at the On3 Elite Series event in Nashville earlier this week, Notre Dame 2025 four-star quarterback commit Deuce Knight had a candid conversation with On3’s JD Pickell. 

Knight, the On3 Industry Ranking’s No. 7 quarterback and No. 54 overall player in the class, spoke about his relationship with the Irish coaching staff and others in an about six-minute long interview. Here is what he told Pickell. 

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On his relationship with Notre Dame offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock: 

“Coach (Mike) Denbrock, that’s my guy. He’s a funny guy. He always tries to joke around with you. But it’s been good. He plans to utilize me in the run game, play action game. He wants to create explosive plays. I have the skill set to make explosive plays like he did last year.” 

On Denbrock comparing Knight to reigning Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Jayden Daniels: 

“(Denbrock) throws up tape (of Jayden Daniels) a lot when I come up there. He will pull up plays where we did the same thing. He’ll be like, ‘You’re already doing it, so why not come do it here?’ It’s always good to go into a system you’re familiar with because you know you’ll fit.

“He has the Heisman Trophy winner attached to his name. He coached him up. That’s a big thing.” 

On training with Phillip Rivers and Riley Leonard:

“That was fun. I was around future pros and probably a future Hall of Famer, so that was great. Riley (Leonard) conducts himself like a pro. A few weeks ago, Coach David Morris from Quarterback Country told me, ‘A great quarterback is a great receiver coach.’

“Then, just working out with Riley Leonard, that’s exactly what he was. He let his wide receivers know what he wanted, and they talked through things. It was great.

“Learning from Phillip Rivers was cool, just getting all the tips on how he picked defenses apart in the league. That was great.” 

On his discussions with Marcus Freeman:

“Coach (Marcus) Freeman, that’s my guy. He always shows love. He will just hit me up out of nowhere and send me a picture of some fresh shoes or something. He’ll call me, and we’ll get on the phone. He always has a smile on his face and shows great love.”  

On where things stand with Ole Miss:

“They stand good. Ole Miss, they stay hitting me up. They let me know that they are not going to stop until I sign, until I put pen to paper. It’s been great. 

“They got Coach (Lane) Kiffin there and I feel like that kind of speaks for itself. He’s an offensive mastermind. He has plenty of systems. He’s not scared to start a freshman. Jalen Hurts started with him. So, it’s been good.” 

On the timeline of him finalizing a decision:

“I am fully committed to Notre Dame. Right now, that’s where I’m going. I’m just not going to stop communication. College football is a business. You never know what crazy things could happen. Then, you’ll be like, ‘Oh, man. I’m out in the water.’ You never know what could happen. It’s life. It’s crazy.”

On who else is contacting him:

“Some schools are still talking to me. Alabama and Colorado. They both made sure to come down and see me in the spring. They still talk to me.” 

On if he talks to Colorado head coach Deion Sanders: 

“Not really. I talked to (Deion Sanders) once. He’s a cool guy. He has a lot of knowledge and is a hall of famer, so talking to him is good.” 

On his impression of Kalen DeBoer at Alabama:

“It’s great. That’s a staff I’ve already known for a long time. Coach (Kalen) DeBoer and (offensive coordinator/quarterbacks) Coach (Nick) Sheridan coached my brother at Indiana. I’ve known them for a long time.

“Coach Sheridan, he was at Indiana and gave me my first offer in eighth grade. That’s a relationship I’ll have for a long time. They just let me know they want to see me win no matter where I go.”

On which staff he has the best relationship with:

“It’s definitely Notre Dame. Gino Guidugli, the quarterbacks coach — that’s my guy. I can hit him up any time of the day or any time at night. He’s always going to text back or give me a call. If he doesn’t answer, he will call me right back. 

“(Guidugli) just wants to see me be great. He wants me to make sure I can have the best senior season I can before I get to Notre Dame. That’s about it.” 

On who he is working on recruiting at the On3 Elite Series event:

“JaDon Blair. That’s who I need.”