SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU) – The Notre Dame football team has a pretty significant number of players who are the sons of former NFL stars, and it looks like the team will soon add a couple more.
Jerome Bettis Jr., the son of “The Bus,” Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis Sr., Elijah Burress, the son of former Pittsburgh and New York receiver Plaxico Burress, James Flanigan, the son of former N.D. and Bears defensive tackle Jim Flanigan and Bryce Young, the son of Hall of Famer and Notre Dame great Bryant Young, are all on the Notre Dame roster. The Irish also had Kennedy Urlacher, the son of former Bears great Brian Urlacher, who transferred to USC this year after playing two years for Notre Dame. And they had Jordan Clark, the son of former NFL defensive back and current ESPN analyst Ryan Clark, who graduated this year.
Now. it’s looking like the Irish will add two more players with NFL dads. Linebacker Thomas Davis Jr. has already committed to Notre Dame’s 2026 class. His dad is Thomas Davis Sr. , who played 16 years in the NFL, mostly with Carolina. And, recruiting analysts are predicting that the son of future Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald, Devin Fitzgerald, will soon commit to play for the Irish.
Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman told J.D. Pickell of on3.com why he thinks so many NFL players want their sons to play at Notre Dame.
“The opportunity to develop as a football player, as well here as anywhere else in the country, but also the opportunity to get a degree that will truly take care of you beyond the game of football,” Freeman said. “I think a lot of those guys that have played in college and played in the NFL understand the value of this university, not only its football program, but the network and the people that you’re in contact with every day here at a place like this.”
Freeman has leaned in to the education and networking benefits Notre Dame can provide to players when he recruits. Most of his players will never play in the NFL, and if they do their careers will likely be relatively short. Freeman sells that idea that football won’t last for long and you may need other opportunities that require a good education and contacts with people who are well connected.
Notre Dame gets a good return on the investment as well. The players have some nice genetics that translate on the field and because their dads know the hard work it takes to make it to the NFL, their kids often understand the work habits required to become a great player.
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