Jaylon Smith and 5 Stud Recruits Who Could Join Him at Notre Dame

One of the nation's top recruits, linebacker Jaylon Smith, has announced that he will become a member of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. He is a 5-star recruit who had offers from nearly every top school in the country, such as Ohio State, Alabama, Michigan and Oklahoma, among others.

He is now the 13th early commitment in the 2013 recruiting class and should provide a great boost to an already talented defense.

Usually when a program lands one top recruit, there are several more to follow. Notre Dame has many top players still on its wish list and hopes this is just the beginning of a remarkable 2013 class. After all, it has gotten off to a very good start early on.

With one 5-star recruit already scheduled to play for Notre Dame, here are a few more top players that could soon follow.

Linebacker: Michael Hutchings

While the Irish have already landed arguably the top outside linebacker in Jaylon Smith, there is another linebacker in this class that isn't too far behind him talent-wise.

His name is Michael Hutchings. He may not be as fast as Smith, but he brings physicality to the game and hits as hard as anybody in this class. Hutchings has solid cover skills and terrific football instincts.

Teaming Hutchings with Smith would give the Irish a scary linebacker duo for the next couple of years. Being from California, the 4-star recruit is of course highly interested in USC and Oregon, but it's way too early to count Notre Dame out just yet, as he told Scout.com:

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Along with USC, it's Miami, Notre Dame, Oregon and Washington. I might add more and get to a top eight and just keep it right there during the season so I can focus on my senior year. I could also just go ahead and choose to commit before the season and get it over with.

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Hutchings will likely spend one of his official visits on Notre Dame at some point.

Fullback: Chans Cox

If you are looking for somebody who can do the dirty work in the running game and provide productive goal-line carries, Chans Cox is your guy.

He is listed by many top recruiting sites as the top fullback in this year's class but can play tight end, linebacker or even the running back position if you really want to abuse opposing defenses. He is listed at 6'3", 230 pounds and has an unfair combination of size and speed.

Overall he is a versatile player who can help a team out in a lot of ways. The 4-star recruit has recently trimmed his list of schools down to eight, and he says Notre Dame is still in the running for his services (via Scout.com):

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Notre Dame, their whole campus and program is based around faith, and like I said, that means a lot. And of course, they have a great tradition there and they have all the character and discipline, so that’s another great school I’m looking at.

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Cornerback: Priest Willis

Priest Willis is somebody who can come in and help strengthen the defensive backfield for the Irish. He has the ability to play cornerback and the safety position. He is a very strong and physical player at 6'2", 200 pounds. He has good speed for somebody his size, great ball skills and is terrific in run support.

The 5-star recruit already has plans to visit Notre Dame and will likely do so during the huge showdown against the Michigan Wolverines. He spoke to Scout.com about what stands out about the Irish:

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I just know they have a lot of tradition there, a lot of potential for their program and a lot of opportunities for me. It’s not just a four-year program, but a 40-year program. It opens up doors in life and opportunities other than football.

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Defensive Tackle: Eddie Vanderdoes

Eddie Vanderdoes is considered one of the top defensive tackles in the 2013 class and for good reason. He has great size at 6'4", 285 pounds, is extremely strong and is very quick off the ball. He would provide depth on the defensive line, which is a little shaky after Aaron Lynch's decision to transfer.

Although the 5-star recruit is from the West Coast and thus very interested in schools such as Cal, USC and Oregon, he does plan on checking out Notre Dame at some point as well (per Scout.com):

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I know they have a tradition of being a winning program. They also have a great history of winning and sending guys to the NFL. They also win and are just a great program.

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Cornerback: Vernon Hargreaves III

Now that the Irish have landed their star linebacker, the top remaining defensive prospect would be the top cornerback, Vernon Hargreaves III.

Hargreaves is the definition of a shutdown corner; he has great speed, quickness and ball skills. He would fill an area of concern for Notre Dame and would have a great chance to compete for playing time right away.

Hargreaves plans to take a trip to Notre Dame at some point during the summer, as he told Scout.com:

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How can you not (be interested)? It’s a good program overall. It’s a good tradition. I don’t know that much about them, to be completely honest.

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With Smith now on board, that gives the top corner another reason to make South Bend his home.