Irish get Love, Shannon to commit
Scout. com
Notre Dame received commitments from two area prospects during its Junior Day weekend.
Nazareth defensive back Julian Love and Loyola long- snapper John Shannon pledged allegiance to the Fighting Irish on Saturday.
Love and Shannon received scholarship offers during their visits and committed before leaving.
‘‘ I was thinking that all my hard work has paid off and my dream school has finally recognized my hard work,’’ Love said. ‘‘ When I told the coaches, I basically said that it was my lifelong dream to [ play for the Irish].’’
The 6- foot, 175- pound Sun-Times’ All- Area selection visited Notre Dame several times and cultivated a relationship with the entire coaching staff.
‘‘ I committed directly to [ coach] Brian Kelly, and he was super excited,’’ said Love, who helped guide Nazareth to a Class 6A state title.
Nazareth coach Tim Racki knew how much the offer and moment meant to Love before he even visited South Bend, Indiana.
‘‘ It couldn’t have happened with a better kid,” Racki said. “It’s his dream school. His dad is a huge fan. It’s been his dream school his whole life, and he is just so wellrounded.
‘‘ He’s popular with not only football players but the entire student population because he is so humble and grounded.’’
The 6- 2, 235- pound Shannon also committed directly to Kelly.
‘‘ That’s always where I’ve wanted to go since I was a little kid. It was a no- brainer forme,’’ Shannon said.
Army calls on two area recruits
Hoffman Estates junior tight end Dante Cleveland received his first scholarship offer, from Army.
‘‘ I was kind of surprised,” Cleveland said. ‘‘ I was happy, and it just felt good. I have to keep working to get better, though.’’
Cleveland has played tight end and defensive end for the Hawks and has been recruited to play both positions in college.
‘‘ I am getting recruited at defensive end and tight end,’’ Cleveland said. ‘‘ Depends on the school, but Army offered me at defensive end.’’
Cleveland has expressed interest in playing either position.
‘‘ On defense, I like that you can come off the ball and come off the edge and pretty much just punish somebody,’’ Cleveland said. ‘‘ As for tight end, I like getting the ball in my hands and making plays. You can also do that at defensive end, but it’s easier to do with the ball in your hands.’’
The Black Knights also offered Conant junior Palmer Graham.
‘‘ It was really a relief,’’ Graham said. ‘‘ I had been waiting for a long time, and all my hard work was paying off.
‘‘[ Army] said they like my versatility and how I can play both sides of the ball at a very high level.’’
Graham could play defensive back or receiver in college.
“[ Army said] they like me as a [ cornerback]. On the offensive side, they say they like me as a slot receiver,” Graham said.