Notre Dame Football: Irish Get a Recruiting Gift When They Play Navy in Ireland

The Fighting Irish are making a pilgrimage of sorts to be part of the Global Ireland Football Tournament (G.I.F.T.). Their gridiron matchup in the Emerald Isle Classic will be against a tough Navy team, but at least some of their attention will be spent on high school recruiting.

There will be a total of 10 high school teams competing in the tournament, seven of them from the United States. While extensive conversations between the FBS-hopefuls and college coaches aren't allowed, chatting will be expected.

Rob Cassidy of rivals.com shared comments from Michael Preston, a G.I.F.T. spokesperson.

"The majority of them are going to the (college) game. That was up to a school-by-school decision on whether or not they go, but most of them are," Preston said.

"They'll go to the Notre Dame-Navy game and then go to this big after-party we're having."

Cassidy also reports that six of the attending players are receiving interest from Notre Dame while 17 of the high school athletes have at least one FBS offer.

"Coaches can't have in-person conversations," said Emily Magy of the NCAA's legislative department. "They can have a friendly 'Hi, how are you,' but they can't talk about anything. They can't have a whole conversation. They have to keep it moving."

The tournament also gives scouts an outstanding opportunity to take in several games they wouldn't see under normal circumstances. There is a growth of international players landing with NCAA teams and this game puts the Irish at the forefront of international recruiting.

The game will also be one of the most broadcast college games of the year.

CBS is airing the game in the U.S. while the Armed Forces Network extends that feed to 175 countries and U.S. Territories. ESPN will also telecast the game in 66 countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly has been openly critical of the game. 

"I love everything about Ireland," Kelly said, according to Mark Lazerus of the Chicago Sun Times. "I’m not a big fan of playing football games in Ireland."

Kelly and his staff relay concerns from the obvious scheduling difficulties to less obvious items. Most of the travel arrangements were actually made by Navy's staff.

It isn't common for 19-year-old players to have passports and tracking down birth certificates for the players was quite a task. Measures were also taken to "Americanize" their meals, but there is little Aviva Stadium can do about their 28-stall locker room for a traveling squad of 100 players.

Some of the coaches have been openly excited about the trip. 

Notre Dame assistant coach Tony Alford shared some straightforward appreciation of the opportunity. "By opening this season in Dublin we've been telling recruits about the international brand power we have." 

As much as Kelly wasn't looking forward to the trip, It could be worse. The crowd will likely be decidedly pro-Irish, but Navy is actually the home team.

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