Now that all the dust has settled from signing day - save for Terrelle Pryor - Rob took the time to grade out the Irish class position by position.  I'm putting this up for Rob because he's down in Jamaica for the week, trying not to become an ongoing topic on Nancy Grace.  Some hoops thoughts will be coming at some point in time in the next few days, although it might not be until I get back to South Bend Saturday evening.

---

Quarterback:  Dayne Christ

Once again, Notre Dame got one of, if not the, best quarterbacks in this year's class.  There's not much more to say about Weis' ability to land top quarterbacks.  Besides Crist's physical abilities, the thing you have to enjoy about him is his confidence and demeanor.  He's not cocky, as in he's expecting to come in here and start against SDSU in September.  Rather, he's confident that he can come in and compete and if he has to sit a few seasons, he'll suck it up and get better.  Throughout his high school career and at the High School All-America, everyone has been craving about his ability to be a leader.  Brady was that type of guy and hopefully Clausen is, although it's too early to know for sure.  I am excited to see what Crist can do -- at 6-5, 220 lbs., he has< the perfect size and ability to be an All-American for the Irish.

Grade: A

---

Running back: Jonas Gray

After getting James Aldridge, Robert Hughes, and Armando Allen over the past two years, running back wasn't a huge need but the Irish picked up a good player in Jonas Gray out of Detroit, Michigan.  He's not the burner that Allen is or the force that Hughes is, but he's more similar to Aldridge in that he's got a good set of wheels to go with a college ready body.  Unfortunately, Jonas wasn't healthy during the All-American practices so we weren't able to see how he compared to some of the other top backs.  He was a solid addition to the Irish class, but Weis will have to bring in another top back or two next year just for safety.

Grade: B+

---

Wide Receiver: Michael Floyd, John Goodman, Deion Walker

This year's wide reciever's class is Notre Dame's best haul at the position in
over 15 years.  It's that special.  Headlining it is All-American Michael Floyd who was one of the top one or two WR's in high school over the past two years. He's got great size to play early and has very deceptive speed.  He knows how to play wide receiver and it wouldn't surprise me to see him starting at the end of next year.  He's that good.  Coming along with him was surprise commit Deion Walker who is a bit taller than Floyd but a little bit less developed. He's extremely athletic and once he turns his rawness into talent, look out. Coming along with them is John Goodman, who although might be the most unheralded of the three, could be the biggest sleeper in the whole class. Goodman chose ND over Michigan and was a terrific athlete in high school, starring as his high school's quarterback this past year.  Although much taller at 6-4, he plays a lot like former Irish player Matt Shelton.  This year's haul is exciting to think about.

Grade: A

---

Tight end: Joseph Fauria, Kyle Rudolph

For the third straight year under Weis, tight end recruiting was another knock-out.  Let's just hope they can stay out of trouble and not transfer.  The nation's top tight end, Kyle Rudolph, committed to the Irish early and Joseph Fauria, nephew of former NFLer Christian Fuaria, committed shortly after.  Both are big guys, Rudolph at 6-6 and Fauria at 6-7, although when I saw him on his official visit he looked closer to 6-9 than 6-7.  Both are terrific talents and should be able to compete for playing time as well as shore up the depth chart. Rudolph is probably a bit more ready than Fauria, as he's a bit more filled out.  I think Rudolph is very similar to John Carlson while Fauria is more of a
Yeatman type player.  You can say what you want about Weis, but the big guy knows how to recruit QB's and TE's.

Grade: A

---

Offensive line: Mike Golic, Lane Clelland, Braxton Cave, Trevor Robinson

After having two years of solid recruiting along the offensive line, Weis put together a solid group of guys, but there were still some holes to be filled. Headlining the class is early enrollee Trevor Robinson, an offensive guard out of Nebraska.  He is a tough guy who will contribute early (whether he likes it or not).  He's strong and has the nastiness that I'm sure most Irish fans will say was missing from the Irish this past season.  Joining him at tackle is Lane Clelland, a highly recruited tackle out of Maryland.  Clelland is a bit raw and a bit undersized, but he was a top target for Weis and John Latina and they were happy at left tackle when he committed.  He is the lone tackle prospect for the Irish.  At center and guard, the Irish brought in Braxston Cave and Mike Golic, Jr., son of former Irish lineman/current ESPN host/NutriSystem superstar Mike Golic.  Cave proved himself to be one of the top linemen at the ESPN All-American game and should give quality depth right away.  I think he has the heart and toughness we haven't seen at the center position since Jeff Faine.  No word on if he'll frequent the tattoo parlor as much, but we'll see. Golic is another center who could play guard but figures to redshirt his first
year while he bulks up and transitions to the college game.  He's undersized now, but he has the frame to get bigger and by all accounts he has terrific technique that let him push bigger guys around at the All-American game this past January.  The four Notre Dame landed were good players, although I think they missed out on the elite tackle that they needed to get.  This becomes a huge need for 2009.

Grade: B

---

Defensive line: Kapron Lewis-Moore, Brandon Newman, Hafis Williams, Sean Cwynar, Ethan Johnson

Even with the Omar Hunter deflection, the Irish did a tremendous job with defensive linemen.  Their biggest recruit is probably Ethan Johnson, a DE who was Oregon's best player in quite some time and offered by everyone.  It's difficult for a freshman lineman to make an impact, but Ethan has the size and Notre Dame has no depth.  He's a terrific end in the 3-4 defense and I can see him even sliding down to DT once he bulks up a bit.  Joining him at end are Sean Cwynar and Kapron Lewis-Moore.  Cwynar has already enrolled, which is a great thing to get him lifting and used to the defensive schemes.  He might be a better offensive player at this point, but we need him on defense and he can
contribute early.  Kapron Lewis-Moore was the surprise addition to the class and brings some athleticism and speed at the defensive end position. Personally, I'm surprised he's starting off their, given how he looked when I saw him on his visit.  He clearly has some room to grow, but he's no more than 220 lbs., so I'm surprised they're not bringing him on as a linebacker first. At defensive tackle, the Irish signed two in Brandon Newman and Hafis Williams.  Hafis is somewhat of an unknown at this point, but Corwin Brown and Charlie Weis offered him very early on and he's a kid who I'm going to pull for. Newman is a large boy and played excellent at the All-American game and quieted the folks who said he didn't belong there.  He has the size to play early, and again the Irish are going to need him to contribute as soon as possible.

Grade: A-

---

Linebacker: Steven Filer, Darius Flemming, David Polsznusy, Anthony McDonald

The Irish needed some talented linebackers and they got them.  Coming in at linebacker, Darius Fleming was one of the more highly sought after players in this class and he has the ability to be a real star at Notre Dame.  With the addition of Jon Tenuta, things could get scary for opposing linemen and running backs attempting to protect their quarterbacks.  Joining him at inside linebacker is a fellow Chicago native in Stephen Filer.  Filer has tremendous size and strength but might need a few seasons to learn the position in college.  Anthony McDonald is another inside linebacker who was teammates with Dayne Crist (imagine facing that team).  He's got great size and instincts and people even seem to think he could turn into a lineman, although I would think Tenuta and Corwin Brown have different opinions on that one.  If you think David Polsnuszny has a familiar name, you're probably thinking of his older brother Paul who starred for Penn State and now the Buffalo Bills.  David is eerily similar of his brother coming out of high school and is blessed with terrific size and speed.  He played some safety in high school but figures to become an outside linebacker or inside linebacker at Notre Dame.  He is a bit raw but has a huge upside.  I think he could be a sleeper in this class.

Grade: A-

---

Cornerback: Jamoris Slaughter, Robert Blanton

The position which seemed to be the most difficult position for Notre Dame to recruit in the past decade has turned out to be a piece of cake for Charlie Weis and his staff over the past three seasons.  The Irish signed two top corners, Robert Blanton out of North Carolina and Georgia native Jamoris Slaughter.  Both are physical type corners that Corwin Brown covets, in fact most services had them as safeties as their natural position.  Blanton is a tall, physical (6-1) player and brings good speed and instincts at the position.  He held his own at the Army All-American game, where some thought he
might struggle against the elite receivers.  Slaugther is a bit smaller but more athletic and one was of the more sought after defensive backs in the south this year.  He brings excellent ball skills and athleticism to a defensive backfield that could use some depth with graduations imminent and some deflections this past season (Munir Prince).  Cornerback is always an important position for any program to recruit, so don't expect the Irish to let up this upcoming recruiting season.

Grade: B+

---

Safety: Dan McCarthy

The Irish only signed one safety this year in Ohio's Dan McCarthy, brother of current Irish safety Kyle McCarthy.  McCarthy was one of Ohio's best players and chose Notre Dame over in-state Ohio State.  He's played a number of positions in high school but has your prototypical size and speed of a safety. He's probably a bit more polished coming out of high school than his brother and should contribute on special teams early.  There is some concern over an injury that occurred this past season, but reports say that he should be ready to go in the Fall.  Look for Notre Dame to target at least two safeties next season.

Grade: B+