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Notre Dame landed another big time commitment when New Jersey star Jackson Vaughn announced for the Irish. He was a must-get prospect for the Irish, who are looking to land another big time defensive line class.
Let's take a look at the commitment profile for Vaughn.
Hometown/High School: Oradell, N.J./Bergen Catholic
Height/Weight: 6-4, 220
IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 100 caliber prospect)
Upside Grade: 5.0 (Top 25 caliber prospect)
2025 Stats: 40 tackles, 12.0 TFL, 8.0 sacks
2024 Stats: 16 tackles, 11.0 TFL, 8.0 sacks
Player Comp: Will McDonald, Iowa State
Recruited By: Charlie Partridge, Notre Dame
Offers: Notre Dame, Ohio State, Texas, Miami (Fla.), Texas, Georgia, Alabama, Oregon, USC, LSU, Texas A&M, Michigan, Florida, Penn State, Tennessee, Florida State, Auburn, Ole Miss, Nebraska, South Carolina, Louisville, Washington, Illinois, Missouri, Virginia Tech, North Carolina, NC State, Pittsburgh, Georgia Tech, Duke, Virginia, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Maryland, West Virginia, Minnesota, Syracuse, Boston College, Purdue, California, Colorado and Rutgers
247Sports: 4-star - No. 105 overall - No. 15 edge
ESPN: 4-star - No. 29 defensive end
Rivals/On3: 3-star - No. 33 edge
247Sports Composite: 4-star - No. 244 overall - No. 22 edge
Rivals/On3 Consensus: 4-star - No. 249 overall - No. 25 edge
Notre Dame wants to start getting more pressure from its defensive line, especially on the edge. Those players also need to be able to effectively set the edge in the run game at a high level. Vaughn has the talent to be an impact edge rusher at the next level. His length, explosiveness an advanced feel for the game make him a really difficult player to block in the pass game, and he has plenty of room to get better. He's a high motor kid who battles in the run game at the prep level, but he'll need to fill out, get stronger and continue growing in that part of the game, but the tools are there.
First time I saw Vaughn was last summer at Notre Dame's Irish Invasion camp. What immediately stood out was his frame and length. It's ironic to see this used against him, but when I saw him up close and personal it was clear he had the frame needed to fill out quite nicely, adding good size and strength. Vaughn will obviously need weight room work and time to fill out his frame, but he does show a strong motor and natural punch off the ball.
Vaughn should easily get to 250 pounds while adding much needed upper body strength. His length also impressed me, both from an observational standpoint and then seeing how he used it to win against tackles as a pass rusher. He'll need time to add onto that frame now that he's getting to college a year earlier than expected, but he should quickly be able to add what's needed to break into the rotation early in his career.
Vaughn shows a really, really impressive burst off the edge, showing the initial burst and explosiveness needed to beat tackles off the ball. He keeps his pad level in a good spot and his length allows him to keep blockers off his body. I also really like the closing speed you want to get to the quarterback and rack up a high number of pressures. Vaughn is a smooth athlete and he has really impressive flexibility and bending skills. These make him really effective on the edge and combine with his other traits — length, explosiveness, technique — to make him a highly impactful edge rusher.
On top of being a talented athlete, Vaughn is an advanced player both technically and from a football IQ standpoint. His body will need to get caught up to speed, but his game was more than ready to handle reclassifying. That's why I question why he was dropped so much in the rankings when he reclassified. His game and production is already on par with other edge players in the class. Vaughn's understanding of how important it is to use his length and hands to win is impressive, and his ability to lean and close around the edge is top notch. He's a technically sound player that has clearly received good coaching and he's worked on his technical game.
Vaughn will need to get stronger to be a stout run defender, but he plays with a good motor and he's aggressive and physical. He's also very patient when he needs to be, but has the athleticism to explode inside to close on runs or chase backs to the perimeter. As he gets stronger and fills out his ability to set the edge will be quite good, and he has the demeanor and "want to" to develop into a stout run defender, much like we've seen from Boubacar Traore the last year at Notre Dame.
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Let's take a look at the commitment profile for Vaughn.
JACKSON VAUGHN PROFILE
Hometown/High School: Oradell, N.J./Bergen Catholic
Height/Weight: 6-4, 220
IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 100 caliber prospect)
Upside Grade: 5.0 (Top 25 caliber prospect)
2025 Stats: 40 tackles, 12.0 TFL, 8.0 sacks
2024 Stats: 16 tackles, 11.0 TFL, 8.0 sacks
Player Comp: Will McDonald, Iowa State
Recruited By: Charlie Partridge, Notre Dame
Offers: Notre Dame, Ohio State, Texas, Miami (Fla.), Texas, Georgia, Alabama, Oregon, USC, LSU, Texas A&M, Michigan, Florida, Penn State, Tennessee, Florida State, Auburn, Ole Miss, Nebraska, South Carolina, Louisville, Washington, Illinois, Missouri, Virginia Tech, North Carolina, NC State, Pittsburgh, Georgia Tech, Duke, Virginia, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Maryland, West Virginia, Minnesota, Syracuse, Boston College, Purdue, California, Colorado and Rutgers
RECRUITING RANKINGS
247Sports: 4-star - No. 105 overall - No. 15 edge
ESPN: 4-star - No. 29 defensive end
Rivals/On3: 3-star - No. 33 edge
247Sports Composite: 4-star - No. 244 overall - No. 22 edge
Rivals/On3 Consensus: 4-star - No. 249 overall - No. 25 edge
NOTRE DAME FIT
Notre Dame wants to start getting more pressure from its defensive line, especially on the edge. Those players also need to be able to effectively set the edge in the run game at a high level. Vaughn has the talent to be an impact edge rusher at the next level. His length, explosiveness an advanced feel for the game make him a really difficult player to block in the pass game, and he has plenty of room to get better. He's a high motor kid who battles in the run game at the prep level, but he'll need to fill out, get stronger and continue growing in that part of the game, but the tools are there.
FILM ANALYSIS
First time I saw Vaughn was last summer at Notre Dame's Irish Invasion camp. What immediately stood out was his frame and length. It's ironic to see this used against him, but when I saw him up close and personal it was clear he had the frame needed to fill out quite nicely, adding good size and strength. Vaughn will obviously need weight room work and time to fill out his frame, but he does show a strong motor and natural punch off the ball.
Vaughn should easily get to 250 pounds while adding much needed upper body strength. His length also impressed me, both from an observational standpoint and then seeing how he used it to win against tackles as a pass rusher. He'll need time to add onto that frame now that he's getting to college a year earlier than expected, but he should quickly be able to add what's needed to break into the rotation early in his career.
Vaughn shows a really, really impressive burst off the edge, showing the initial burst and explosiveness needed to beat tackles off the ball. He keeps his pad level in a good spot and his length allows him to keep blockers off his body. I also really like the closing speed you want to get to the quarterback and rack up a high number of pressures. Vaughn is a smooth athlete and he has really impressive flexibility and bending skills. These make him really effective on the edge and combine with his other traits — length, explosiveness, technique — to make him a highly impactful edge rusher.
On top of being a talented athlete, Vaughn is an advanced player both technically and from a football IQ standpoint. His body will need to get caught up to speed, but his game was more than ready to handle reclassifying. That's why I question why he was dropped so much in the rankings when he reclassified. His game and production is already on par with other edge players in the class. Vaughn's understanding of how important it is to use his length and hands to win is impressive, and his ability to lean and close around the edge is top notch. He's a technically sound player that has clearly received good coaching and he's worked on his technical game.
Vaughn will need to get stronger to be a stout run defender, but he plays with a good motor and he's aggressive and physical. He's also very patient when he needs to be, but has the athleticism to explode inside to close on runs or chase backs to the perimeter. As he gets stronger and fills out his ability to set the edge will be quite good, and he has the demeanor and "want to" to develop into a stout run defender, much like we've seen from Boubacar Traore the last year at Notre Dame.
———————
Become a premium Irish Breakdown member, which grants you access to all of our premium content and our premium message board! Click on the link below for more.
BECOME A MEMBER
Be sure to stay locked into Irish Breakdown all the time!
Join the Irish Breakdown community!
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown YouTube channel
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown podcast on iTunes
Follow me on Twitter: @CoachD178
Like and follow Irish Breakdown on Facebook
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Continue reading...
