Heralded quarterback Drew Pyne 'teared up' before Notre Dame commitment

FRISCO, Texas – Years before he committed to Notre Dame, where he now stands as one of the many four-star prospects in a 2020 recruiting class firmly ranked among the nation’s best, Drew Pyne was considering a program on the opposite end of college football’s power spectrum: South Alabama.

If not truly considering the Jaguars – more on that in a moment – Pyne felt an attachment to South Alabama for a sentimental reason. The Jaguars coaching staff was the first to offer Pyne, then an eighth grader, after the New Canaan (Conn.) High School product threw at a camp featuring former Alabama quarterback Jacob Coker.

“I’m very thankful for them and always will be,” he said of South Alabama. “It’s like kissing your first girl. You always remember who it is.”

More offers would follow, including several from a who’s-who list of Bowl Subdivision elite: Alabama, Auburn, Florida State and the Fighting Irish, to name a few.

South Alabama was the offer “that kind of started the train,” Pyne said from the annual Elite 11 showcase featuring the nation’s top quarterback prospects. Pyne is one of a handful of Notre Dame commitments and recruiting targets who will be in attendance for The Opening, another major recruiting events including players at every position which began here on Monday.

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That Pyne would end up at Notre Dame seemed inevitable, to a degree. There’s that home video: Pyne as a 4-year-old with his father and brothers watching the movie "Rudy," which details the early life and college career of former Notre Dame walk-on Rudy Ruettiger, chanting Ruettiger’s name and celebrating during the film’s final scene.

Then, during an unofficial visit to South Bend as a sophomore, walking through the tunnel into Notre Dame Stadium as the band played and feeling goosebumps, already knowing he’d be giving head coach Brian Kelly and the Irish his verbal commitment – which he did not long after the visit.

“I almost teared up. I knew right then that it was the place for me,” Pyne said.

When it comes to playing quarterback at Notre Dame, “It was always a dream of mine,” he added.

Pyne will join Notre Dame at a crucial juncture at a crucial position. Ian Book has another two seasons of eligibility, meaning Pyne’s first season will cross with Book’s last – unless the returning starter puts together the sort of 2019 season that vaults him up NFL draft boards.

“I look to him a lot,” Pyne said of Book.

But there’s no clear-cut, unquestioned replacement for Book currently on Notre Dame’s roster. There’s another former four-star, Phil Jurkovec, who made two attempts as a true freshman in 2018 and is set to be the primary backup this season. In February, Notre Dame signed three-star prospect Brendon Clark, who flipped to the Irish from Wake Forest.

The quarterback room will add one more name before Pyne arrives on campus: Notre Dame currently holds a verbal commitment from 2021 prospect Tyler Buchner, a California product currently ranked among the top 100 players in his class. 

Still, Pyne knows the door is open for an early chase for the starting job: “I’m just going to get to Notre Dame and compete, try my best, be the best teammate I can and be the best quarterback I can,” he said.