Keeping it in the family: Notre Dame is recruiting the sons of three former greats
On April 22, 2023, Prep Football Report analyst Tom Lemming, a legendary media figure in football recruiting, had a photo shoot on Notre Dame’s campus on the day of the Blue-Gold Game.
Among the attendees were three players who signed with Notre Dame in the 1990 recruiting class: running back Jerome Bettis Sr., and defensive linemen Jim Flanigan and Bryant Young. They made the trip with their three sons as well.
Young was a team captain in 1993 and earned first-team All-America honors that season. He went on to be a first-round draft choice by the San Francisco 49ers in 1994 where he played until 2007.
Young was selected for the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2022. Across 14 seasons, he totaled 89.5 sacks and was picked to play in four Pro Bowls.
His son Bryce, out of Charlotte (N.C.) Christian, had his pick of colleges like Michigan, Stanford, Tennessee and USC. However, Young — the nation’s No. 19 EDGE and No. 194 overall player in On3’s class of 2024 rankings — decided he’d attend his father’s alma mater and committed to the Irish a week after attending the spring game.
Flanigan was picked in the third-round of the 1994 NFL Draft after a strong collegiate career at Notre Dame. He spent seven years in Chicago with the Bears as a defensive lineman and was named the 2000 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year.
His son, James, is class of 2025 tight end who has Notre Dame on his offer sheet. Ranked as the No. 9 tight end and No. 229 overall player in the land per On3, Flanigan is undecided but is giving the Fighting Irish a close look. He attends high school at Green Bay (Wis.) Notre Dame de la Baie Academy.
Bettis Sr. ran for nearly 2,000 yards in his career for the Fighting Irish before entering the 1993 NFL Draft. He was the No. 10 overall pick and played for 13 seasons professionally — his first three with the Rams and final 10 with the Steelers. Bettis was picked for the 2015 Pro Football Hall of Fame after a career with 13,662 rushing yards and 91 scores on the ground.
Atlanta Woodward Academy’s Jerome Bettis Jr., the No. 59 wide receiver in the land per On3’s 2025 rankings, added an offer from Notre Dame in March and has Georgia Tech, Arkansas, Boston College, Missouri, North Carolina State and others on his list of offers.
Between these three families, there’s not only strong Notre Dame pedigree but outstanding success in the NFL. Plus, Chicago Bears’ legend Brian Urlacher’s son, Kennedy, has committed to Notre Dame in the 2024 class.
This article first appeared in the 2023 Blue & Gold Illustrated football preview. If you haven’t picked up your copy yet, do so at this link.
Being Raised Irish
Jerome Jr. grew up very familiar with Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish logo was visible around the home, and the family went to games during his childhood. His knowledge of Notre Dame, though, has grown even more in the past couple years.
Jerome Sr. declared early for the NFL Draft, and around 30 years later he returned to Notre Dame to finish his degree. He returned as one of the most recognizable figures on campus and got his diploma in May 2022.
Six months later, the elder Bettis and his son returned to campus to see the Irish knock off Clemson. And again in April, they were in South Bend for the Blue-Gold Game.
Jerome Jr. hasn’t committed to Notre Dame yet, but his older sister, Jada, will be attending the university this fall.
“They were going to campus more and came to my graduation — they’ve seen the university in more than just the football perspective,” Jerome Sr. told Blue & Gold Illustrated.
“I’ve always regarded Notre Dame highly and was a fan growing up,” Jerome Jr. added. “Seeing how Notre Dame has benefited his life and set him up for success made me consider the school even more. It’s been very impactful.”
Jerome Sr. admitted that it’s been difficult at times to stay an objective party in his son’s recruitment. He is a Notre Dame legend who has a reinvigorated love for the school after graduating last year, and his daughter is starting her college education there next fall.
“I told him and will continue to tell him is to take your time, go through the process and you’ll be where your supposed to be,” the elder Bettis said.
He has made it clear that it’s not going to be his choice on where his son plays at the next level.
“The challenging part is to communicate that to the powers that be at the university — letting them know that I’m not the decision-maker in this process,” Jerome Sr. added. “There’s no need to recruit me. They need to recruit my son, because he’s going to make that final decision, just like I did when I was 18 years old.
“I’ll help as much as I can, but he’s going to make the decision. That’s how I’ve positioned myself in the process, understanding that it can be a challenging situation because his father went to the university, and there’s the expectation he will as well. However, I’m clear that I want him to be happy with his decision.”
While Jerome Jr. grew up with his eyes on Notre Dame often, James Flanigan, also in the 2025 class, did not as much. Some families may sit around the television and watch a lot of college football on Saturdays — especially Notre Dame. But others don’t.
The younger Flanigan may not have had the same exposure to the program as Jerome Jr., but he certainly had Notre Dame influence via his father.
“You might be surprised that James has only been to one Notre Dame game his entire life, and that’s when he was very young,” Jim said. “What I do mention to him more than anything are the lessons I learned through Coach [Lou] Holtz and playing football at Notre Dame. We’re absolutely fans of Notre Dame and do watch games on TV occasionally, but we do other things on the weekend.
“That’s how I grew up — I wanted to play football more than I wanted to watch it. I’d rather be outside doing stuff and playing other sports. And for better or worse, that’s how it went down for James.”
James picked up his offer from Notre Dame this year on St. Patrick’s Day — the same day Jerome Jr. received his. The staff uses the holiday for a big recruiting blitz each year in the rising junior class. The Flanigans visited South Bend twice in the spring and will likely be back this fall for a game or two.
“There’s a spot in my heart for Notre Dame, and James has had several positive experiences on campus,” the elder Flanigan said. “Everything is in a good position right now, but we want to go through the process and make sure it’s right for James.
“I’ve discussed this with him — and I’m sure Jerome Bettis and Bryant Young have said this to their kids — there are pros and cons to being a legacy kid. On one hand, there’s the recognition and the history there, but on the other hand, it can create some pressure. There will be a lot of people looking at you because of that. We want James to feel comfortable with that if his decision is to go to Notre Dame.
“There is a higher bar at Notre Dame, and if he wants to accept that challenge, we’re all for it. But if he wants to go a different direction, we’re fine with that as well.”
The elder Young’s son is already committed to Notre Dame, but just like the case with his former teammates, he didn’t push Bryce towards the Irish.
“He’s pretty quiet [during Notre Dame visits], but if he sees something that he experienced, then he’ll say something,” Bryce said. “He let me go through the process to see what I think about it for myself.”
The elder Flanigan and the elder Bettis both raved about the job that Notre Dame — led by head coach Marcus Freeman — has done not only in their own sons’ recruitment, but with going after legacy kids in general.
“You have to give Coach Freeman and his staff credit for focusing on legacy kids,” Jim said. “I’m not sure that it’s necessarily happened in the recent past at Notre Dame. It’s a special place, in part, because of the people who went there before, and you have the chance to continue that tradition.
“There’s a high standard, but if you accept the challenge, there is a lot of potential reward.”
“They’re doing an outstanding job,” Jerome Sr. added. “They understand that with these former players’ kids, there’s no reason you shouldn’t be in the running to get the young man at your university. But for some reason in years before, that wasn’t the case. They weren’t even visiting the university. And when you ask the former players why that wasn’t happening, they’d say it was because Notre Dame wasn’t reaching out to them.
“It was very strange that it wasn’t happening, and to see the commitment that the university has made now to make that a point of emphasis is encouraging. They understand they won’t get all the kids, but there’s at least the opportunity for it to happen. They’ve made it crystal clear their perspective with us — they’re making my son a priority.”
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