Former elite Notre Dame recruiting target is predicted to land with an SEC power ahead of his commitment date

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Notre Dame landed a commitment from 2028 quarterback Trey Tagliaferri last week. Another talented signal caller is set to come off the board.

When it comes to Notre Dame’s 2028 quarterback recruiting, things have changed drastically in a short amount of time. It wasn’t too long ago that elite passer Kingston Preyear looked destined to land in South Bend, but no longer.

The Alexander City (Al.) Benjamin Russell signal caller announced he will make his college decision on July 10, choosing between Alabama, Florida, and Vanderbilt. For head coach Marcus Freeman and the Notre Dame staff, this is a recruit who appeared well within reach not long ago. He is another example of how quickly recruiting can change.

It wasn’t too long ago that many were extremely high on Notre Dame’s chances to land Preyear. The 4-star quarterback had taken an unofficial visit to South Bend early this offseason, and the vibes coming out of that trip were strong. On the 247 Sports Composite ranking, Prieur is currently pegged as the No. 44 overall player, the No. 4 quarterback, and the No. 3 player from the state of Alabama for the 2028 recruiting class.

This was a talented prospect who seemed like a natural fit for the Irish program.

What changed for Notre Dame?

Things shifted when the Fighting Irish landed a commitment from 2028 Oradell (NJ) Bergen Catholic quarterback Trey Tagliaferri, but honestly, everything shifted a couple of weeks prior.

Following Preyear’s visit to South Bend several weeks ago, everyone, including myself, thought that would be Notre Dame’s 2028 quarterback. Optimism began swirling around that potential fit, and that included folks in the program. Instead of committing, Preyear opted to keep his options open after his support system urged him to do so. That allowed Tagliaferri to quickly become the guy for the Irish, not wanting to put themselves in a bad position as they waited.

That Tagliaferri commitment had been expected for well over a week, and the staff clearly made the decision that Tagliaferri was the player they wanted at the position. Quarterback coach Gino Guidugli and Freeman decided to move forward with their guy rather than wait on Preyear, who opted to keep his options open.

Now, funny enough, Preyear’s recruitment appears to be coming to a close. Rivals national recruiting analyst Steve Wilfong has logged a prediction for Preyear to end up with the Alabama Crimson Tide. That would be a tremendous get for Crimson Tide head coach Kalen DeBoer and the Alabama program, which just signed Prieur’s teammate, 2026 five-star wide receiver signee Cedarian Morgan.

Kingston Preyear’s recruiting background

Preyear is coming off a sophomore season at Benjamin Russell where he threw for 3,026 yards and 34 touchdown passes while throwing only five interceptions. He also added another 518 yards and two touchdowns on the ground at 5.6 yards per carry. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound quarterback does his best work in the pocket but clearly has the athletic traits to make people miss and provide the occasional splash play in the run game.

His offer list reflects that production. Some of his top offers include Notre Dame, Alabama, Florida, Clemson, Auburn, Vanderbilt, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Florida State, LSU, Kentucky, Maryland, Ole Miss, Tennessee, South Carolina, UCLA, and Purdue, among others.

Looking at the bigger picture for Notre Dame

While Preyear would have looked great in a Notre Dame uniform, it was not meant to be. Perhaps if the staff had stayed patient a little longer, they could have ended up with the talented signal caller. But Freeman and his staff made their decision, and it’s hard to question a program that has landed the likes of CJ Carr, Kenny Minchey, Noah Grubbs, Blake Hebert, Teddy Jarrard, and Champ Monds over the last few recruiting cycles.

Only time will tell if the staff’s ideology of taking Tagliaferri and not being as patient with Preyear pays off. The track record suggests they have earned the benefit of the doubt, but this is a decision that Notre Dame fans will keep an eye on as Preyear develops at whichever program he selects on July 10.

This article was originally published on A to Z Sports. Read the full story here: Former elite Notre Dame recruiting target is predicted to land with an SEC power ahead of his commitment date

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