Notre Dame Football Recruiting: Kelly Gets Commitment from 4-Star Quarterback

Last year, the Fighting Irish faithful had to wait until January for the team to bring in a quarterback. This year, Notre Dame has one committed before the end of March.

Gunner Kiel was a last-minute addition to their class, and he was warmly welcomed as the nation's premier quarterback recruit. This recruiting season, Brian Kelly's junior day is where he cashed in, as Malik Zaire has pledged his commitment early in the cycle.

Over the last few seasons, we've seen junior days get revved up.

First, it was Texas with its massive hauls just a couple of years ago. Then, we started seeing VIP junior days for the most sought-after recruits; Georgia with its "Very Important Dawgs" events, and UNC hosting kids for the Duke game.

All in all, the importance of pushing the timeline up to secure commitments has helped coaches get their feet in the door early and put their schools on the athletes' minds.

For Kelly, it paid off with another quarterback commitment.

Zaire entered with offers from schools all over the country, including Alabama, Wisconsin and Nebraska, but it was the Irish who won out, for now. The junior from Kettering, Ohio was an Ohio State target with an offer in hand from Urban Meyer, so expect the Buckeyes' head man to remain in the fray, especially for a kid just an hour-and-a-half from Columbus.

What Zaire does for the Irish is further the idea that Kelly is hitting recruiting hard, already with seven commitments for the 2013 class. 

It reminds folks in the Big Ten that it is not just Brady Hoke and Meyer that they have to contend with for the big fish in the Midwest; the Fighting Irish are playing in the same pool too. 

As far as the roster goes, Zaire would become the fifth scholarship quarterback for the Irish in 2013, adding himself to the mix with Tommy Rees, Andrew Hendrix, Everett Golson and Gunner Kiel. That's a lot of quarterbacks for one football, but it is better to have and not need than to need and not have.

In today's recruiting climate, the battle for Zaire will remain open until he signs his letter of intent, but for now, the Ohio native seems bound for South Bend.