SOUTH BEND — South Bend Washington High School athlete David Perkins announced Tuesday morning that he will play football at Notre Dame.
The 6-foot-2, 210-pound senior-to-be received a scholarship offer last week from Irish coach Brian Kelly, and had narrowed his list of finalists to ND, Syracuse, Mississippi State, Iowa and Tennessee. Perkins made his announcement during a press conference at the Washington library.
Perkins is the 10th player to verbally commit to Notre Dame’s recruiting class of 2012. He also is the second South Bend high school player in the last three years to pick Notre Dame.
Clay’s Daniel Smith signed with the Irish in 2010 and enters his sophomore season looking to make an impact at wide receiver after playing mainly on special teams as a freshman last fall.
"You can never, ever, if you’re Notre Dame, pass up a guy locally with that kind of ability," CBS College Sports recruiting analyst Tom Lemming said of Perkins.
Perkins could play a number of positions for the Irish. He was used as a running back and wide receiver last season at Washington. He ran for 765 yards on 82 carries, scoring three rushing touchdowns. He also caught 12 passes for 176 yards and four TDs.
Perkins also registered 13 sacks playing defensive end and outside linebacker for the Panthers. He played his first two seasons at Kalamazoo (Mich.) Central High before transferring to Washington prior to his junior season.
Lemming projects Perkins as an outside linebacker at ND, in large part because of 4.5-second speed in the 40-yard dash, and that he stands 6-2.
"He’s tall and he can run," Lemming said, "and that’s two qualities Notre Dame looks for.
"He’s not yet a super player, but he has the potential to be that."