Notre Dame landed a commitment from a new Class of 2025 quarterback recruit, as Blake Hebert announced Monday that he’s flipping from Clemson to the Irish. The move comes 12 days after Notre Dame lost highly touted quarterback Deuce Knight to Auburn.
Hebert, listed at 6 feet 3, 205 pounds, plays at Brunswick School in Greenwich, Conn. He’s a four-star prospect in the 247Sports Composite, ranked No. 400 overall and No. 29 among quarterbacks. Knight is a five-star prospect ranked as the fifth-best quarterback.
HERE COME THE IRISH!☘️ #THINKBIG #committed pic.twitter.com/5opM3wSbt9
— Blake Hebert (@BlakeHeberttt) October 14, 2024
With Hebert’s commitment, Notre Dame’s 23-member Class of 2025 ranks 13th nationally. Clemson is down to 13 commitments and without a quarterback.
How Hebert fits at Notre Dame
Hebert doesn’t replace Knight exactly, at least not in terms of raw ability. Knight was considered a top-five quarterback nationally with undeniable athleticism. Hebert is a top-30 prospect at the position with adequate size and athleticism compared to higher-end prospects. But Clemson is Clemson and Notre Dame just took a prospect away from another College Football Playoff contender rather than dropping down the sport’s food chain to find a solution.
The importance of landing Hebert might not be clear until next spring when the quarterback depth chart could flip. Riley Leonard will be gone, and CJ Carr is expected to replace him as QB1. Where does that leave Steve Angeli and Kenny Minchey? Potentially on the outside looking in, with Angeli’s eligibility clocking ticking down. Minchey is more of a wild card, but falling behind a younger quarterback typically signals an exit.
Notre Dame could get creative by moving Tyler Buchner back to the quarterback room for depth, perhaps letting Hebert be third-string in a scenario where the position is hit with an exodus. Either way, Hebert helps Notre Dame manage numbers at a position where getting caught short can short-circuit an entire season. Knight would have been ideal, but whoever the Irish took this cycle was going to have to wait for his shot. Perhaps Hebert is better wired for that reality. — Pete Sampson, Notre Dame beat writer
What does losing Hebert mean for Clemson?
Although Hebert isn’t a headliner in the 2025 class, Clemson is still in a precarious position as we barrel closer to the early signing period. The Tigers didn’t take a quarterback in the Class of 2024 and thought they were good to go at the position for 2025 when Hebert committed in June 2023. It will be fascinating to see where Dabo Swinney goes from here. Clemson has the national brand to flip someone committed to a smaller school. We’ve seen quarterbacks reclassify recently, as well, and 2026 Clemson commit Tait Reynolds is a four-star prospect.
The Tigers signed four-star Christopher Vizzina in the Class of 2023 as Cade Klubnik’s presumed successor and it stands to reason Klubnik will be back for the 2025 season. But the Tigers will want to have another quarterback on the roster for the sake of numbers. There’s also … the transfer portal. Swinney hasn’t taken a meaningful transfer from the portal yet. Could that change? — Grace Raynor, national recruiting writer
Required reading
(Photo: Matt Cashore / Imagn Images)
