Notre Dame Recruiting 2012: What'll It Take to Get Deontay Greenberry to Sign?

Notre Dame made its way into the national headlines this week when word broke that Gunner Kiel, one of the top quarterback prospects in the country, had shockingly reneged on his commitment to LSU, and instead decided to enroll in school in South Bend and play for the Irish.

The addition of Kiel came as a pleasant surprise to many Notre Dame supporters, and it turned out to be a major recruiting coup for coach Brian Kelly.

But Kiel isn’t the first heralded blue-chip prospect that Kelly’s brought to Notre Dame, and by the looks of the current commitments for the 2012 class, he certainly won’t be the last.

While Kelly’s team has produced mixed results on the field in his first two seasons at the helm, going just 8-5 in consecutive campaigns, him and his coaching staff have been absolutely dominating on the recruiting trail since they arrived at the school.

In 2011, Kelly reeled in big names like defensive ends Aaron Lynch and Stephon Tuitt and tight end Ben Koyack, who should all pay major dividends in the years to come, and he ended up bringing in a class that was considered by many to be one of the best collections of recruits in the country.

Now, as we move closer and closer to National Signing Day on Feb. 1, Kelly’s 2012 crop is shaping up to be even better, especially with Kiel now on board.

Along with Kiel, both CB Tee Shepard and DT Sheldon Day, two highly touted four-star prospects, have also enrolled early in South Bend, and they look to be just the beginning of what should be a huge infusion of incoming freshman talent.

Big-name recruits like S Elijah Shumate (Don Bosco HS, New Jersey), OT Ronnie Stanley (Bishop Gorman HS, Nevada) and RB William Mahone (Austintown Fitch, Ohio) have all pledged their services to coach Kelly and the Irish, but the most intriguing commit in the 2012 class looks like it could be WR Deontay Greenberry, who hails from Fresno, California.

Greenberry is considered to be one of the elite receiver recruits in the country, and he’s got the talent and potential to develop into a bona fide star in Kelly’s spread offense.

The 6’3’’, 180-pound four-star prospect shined bright for California’s Washington Union high school in his senior season this past year, as he set state receiving records with 2,165 yards and 33 touchdowns, and helped lead his team to an undefeated 14-0 season and a state championship.

Greenberry certainly lived up to the hype that he had accumulated over the summer, but his exploits on the high school gridiron may only simply be a glimpse of what he actually has in store once he reaches the peak of his physical maturation.

With the combination of size, speed, hands and leaping ability that Greenberry possesses, he’s got the chance to be an instant impact player at the college level, but the question is, will he be making that impact in a Notre Dame uniform?

Greenberry has stayed committed to Notre Dame since he announced his decision last May, never sounding like he was seriously wavering from his choice, even though he paid a few visits to Pac-12 schools such as USC and Arizona State.

Still, as we’ve seen in years past, until a recruit signs on the dotted line of a letter of intent, there are no guarantees.

As we move closer to signing day, one of Brian Kelly’s top priorities has to be to sure up a signature from Greenberry, as it wouldn’t be surprising to see a few schools try to make one last late push for his services.

Even if other schools do make one last run at him, though, there’s still a lot for Greenberry to like about the Irish.

The allure of playing for a team as prestigious as Notre Dame, playing with cousin Tee Shepard, getting the chance to play early in a receiver rotation that loses star Michael Floyd, teaming up with a quarterback the caliber of Gunner Kiel and playing in a receiver-friendly offense like Kelly’s are all key selling points that Irish coaches should hammer home the next time they talk with the star recruit.

With so many reasons to come to South Bend, it's hard to see Greenberry switching courses now, and if he does ultimately end up signing with the Irish on National Signing Day as expected, he's the type of young player that could play a pivotal role in Notre Dame's quest to make it to a BCS bowl next season.