College football is a weird place. Weird if you are not familiar with the nuances of every football program. It’s full of traditions, and sometimes, you can’t even understand some of these traditions. There’s the tradition of Clemson’s players rubbing the Howard’s Rock at Memorial Stadium. For the Fighting Irish, it’s the “Play Like a Champion Today’ sign, a tradition started by Lou Holtz, their natty-winning coach. Most of these traditions go decades back. However, one such tradition is relatively new, and it involves the Fighting Irish again.

Wounded lions are a dangerous breed. Well, you can replace the animal with a disheartened Notre Dame that had to back off from a national championship game, giving it up on Ohio State following a historic season. Marcus Freeman couldn’t swallow the pill yet, and ever since, he’s been walking on the path of a stronger redemption. And what could be a greater weapon than an aggressive portal move for delivering the championship dream? But lending 61 offers in one day? Well, not a surprise at all. Marcus Freeman is just living the typical Notre Dame tradition of celebrating Pot of Gold Day while arraying stones in the step toward his success.

In the growing NIL era, where programs are at the peak of their competitive streak to land as many athletes as possible and adorn the roster stronger and sharper than the others, the Fighting Irish force all of them to take a backseat in the middle of March every year since 2021. Thanks to a five-year-old tradition that features a slew of sophomore offers handed by the program.

The Irish football program channeled its big recruitment aim as a form of celebration of granting offers to sophomores all across the country on St. Patrick’s Day. The fifth edition of that tradition is already underway, with the Irish dazzling the rest of the CFB world by dishing out close to 70 scholarship offers to key targets hailing from different programs, representing different positions. The specific number so far stands at 61, and the list includes elite 2027 offensive tackle Cooper Hacket, sophomore safety Marquis Byrant, 160-pound cornerback from Bradenton, Florida, Censere Gaylord, and a lot of others.

Notre Dame football general manager Mike Martin highlighted the sole importance of the Pot of Gold Day before walking off the stage at the end of his introductory press conference earlier this month. ”I think Pot of Gold Day is a unique experience,” Martin said. “We made an experience out of the whole thing. I just want to point out that this place was the first place to do that. I think it’s the best place to do it.” The idea is simple: to make the day memorable through constructive steps for the franchise. 

If you think it’s a hollow hype, think again. The trend says each of the last three recruiting classes to sign with Notre Dame has included at least one Pot of Gold Day offer. The prime examples are cornerback Micah Bell in the 2023 class, offensive linemen Guerby Lambert and Peter Jones, linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, and tight end Jack Larsen in the 2024 class. There is more to this list, but grooving over the past glory won’t make sense. Now, it’s time to weigh in on the future. Who among the 61 recruits makes their mind up about the Irish and ends up landing in South Bend? So far, 2027 Florida DT Jamar Thompson looks to be a real chance.

Jamar Thompson‍ seems to be blown away by a Notre Dame offer

Jamar Thompson‍ fell numb in pure joy and excitement when he first knew that Notre Dame extended an offer during the Irish’s Pot of Gold push on St. Patrick’s Day. “I was at a loss for words,” Thompson told Irish Sports Daily. “It’s an amazing offer, an amazing school and program. That’s a good opportunity for me.”

His epic high school career and a set of extraordinary prowess made him a catch among schools like Auburn, Baylor, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Penn State, South Florida, Syracuse, West Virginia, and others. But the Florida native has a ton of appreciation and admiration for Marcus Freeman’s program.

“I know that’s a good program, and they produce a lot of good players out there,” he said. Irish defensive line coach Al Washington played the most pivotal role in captivating his interest. “He was telling me that he liked me. I’m a very good kid. I’m special, and they want to get me out there to practice to watch them.”

The West Boca Raton High School alumna doesn’t want to disappoint the faith of the Irish DL coach and hence started to feel an unspoken responsibility to step into the best version of himself. “I’m going to try to get up there to catch a spring practice,” he said. “Just check out the atmosphere, see how everything is up there, see the potential up there, and everything.”

Oh, for a gentle reminder, he is not yet a signee. Do you smell something bankable? Yeah, we too! Get ready for more such news in the coming few weeks.