"Brian Kelly lockered": CFB world reacts to 4-star LB Ellis McGaskin commitment to Marcus Freeman's Notre Dame

The college football world had some interesting reactions after four-star linebacker Ellis McGaskin committed to Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame.

McGaskin is a four-star linebacker who's the 13th-ranked linebacker and 209th-ranked player in the Class of 2027, according to 247Sports. He was highly sought after and ended up committing to Notre Dame over the likes of LSU, Florida, Miami, Michigan, Ohio State, and Tennessee, among others.

After he committed to Notre Dame, college football fans took aim at other schools for not landing the linebacker.

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"Brian Kelly lockered," a fan wrote.

"LMAOOOOOO Ohio st missing on everyone," a fan added.

Notre Dame fans are glad Freeman was able to land another commitment to add more talent to the roster in a couple of years.

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"LSU wtf happened," a fan added.

"Notre Dame on track to become the best recruiting program in the nation under Freeman," a fan wrote.

In high school in the 2023 season, McGaskin recorded 142 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 2 forced fumbles.

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"How did bama miss this guy??," a fan wrote.

"Ryan Day is looking to jump to the NFL. That's why they keep losing these guys," a fan added.

College football fans, however, think there is a chance that McGaskin could end up flipping elsewhere, given he's a 2027 commit.

Marcus Freeman & Notre Dame eager to start the 2025 season against Miami

Marcus Freeman and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish will open its 2025 college football season on Aug. 31 against Miami.

It will be a primetime game and will be a tough test for the Fighting Irish out of the gate. However, Freeman is eager for the early challenge as he knows his team has to be ready right away.

"I look at that big game and say, ‘OK, what do I need to do to prepare this team for that big one?’ “ Freeman said, via South Bend Tribune. “Whoever is our starting quarterback is going to be inexperienced. How do we create as many high-pressure situations in training camp so that they’re not panicking (when) all of a sudden you’re down there in South Florida getting ready to play the University of Miami?”

The Fighting Irish are three-point favorites to defeat Miami in the season opener, but Freeman knows Notre Dame will have to be on their A-game to get the win.

Notre Dame has notable games against Arkansas, Texas A&M, USC, NC State, Syracuse, and Pitt among others.

About the author

Cole is an NHL, NFL and College Sports reporter at Sportskeeda with over 7 years of experience writing for publications like CBC, USA Today, SMG, BJPENN, Sherdog and SB Nation.

An NHL fan his whole life, Cole played rep hockey in Canada from age 5 until 17 and grew up rooting for Martin St. Louis and the Tampa Bay Lightning. His all-time favorite players are Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, while Jon Cooper is his favorite coach of all time.

Cole attended Sheridan College and received his journalism degree in 2019. After decades of watching and reporting, he considers his knowledge of sports as his primary strength. He ensures that the same story has been reported by at least two reputed reporters before creating it.

Cole enjoys playing golf and spending time with friends and family when not reporting breaking stories. His favorite sports moment is from the 2010 Olympics, when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime to beat Team USA for the gold medal.

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Edited by Cole Shelton