The South Bend Tribune from South Bend, Indiana • SS4

FOOTBALL RECRUITING Olsen a good fit for Irish Brown runs in to ND plans fe C' ISR PhotoGREG SWIERCZ Cleveland St. Ignatius standout Robby Parris (11) put on quite a show recently when his team traveled to the South Bend area to play Penn High School. Picture-perfect Parris By BOB WIENEKE Irish Sports Report There have been times this season when Proviso East (May-wood, 111.) football coach Aaron Peppers will be standing on the sidelines, and all of a sudden one of the Midwest's top safeties will be jawing in his ear. And can you really blame Sergio Brown, who has been timed at 4.38 seconds in the 40-yard dash, scored eight touchdowns as a receiver last year and added five more touchdowns on interception returns? "He's been bugging me," Peppers said. 'Coach, can you give me some That O-love (of Brown fense) might or might not arrive for the 6-foot-2, 193-pound Brown this season, but it was Notre Dame's love of Brown's that earned him an Irish scholarship.

Brown last Tuesday became the 18th member of Notre Dame's recruiting class of 2006 when he offered his verbal commitment Notre Dame was one of 27 schools to offer, a list that also included Illinois, LSU, Nebraska, Minnesota, UCLA and Northwestern. Brown's speed was one of the main reasons schools fell in love with him. Peppers recalled a reverse (some of that O-love Brown coveted) run for Brown during a recent Proviso East game. It wasn't until 67 yards later that the play ended, just yards short of the goal line. "You really don't know his speed until it's too late," Peppers said.

"He just jetted out there like he was a gazelle." Another boost may come from ND quarterback commit Demetrius Jones, who plays at Chicago's Morgan Park High School. Jones accompanied Brown to Notre Dame's Sept 17 home opener against Michigan State. "It didn't hurt going over there," Peppers said. Brown became the fourth safety to commit in a little over a week. "This kid is a guy who can come in and make an impact right away if he picks up the system," said recruiting analyst Tom lemming, who ranks Brown as the No.

85 player nationally. "He has got great instincts, quickness to the ball, he's tough and he's got big-time speed. And he's 6-2. This guy's got it all." By BOB WIENEKE Irish Sports Report Charlie Weis often uses the terms "tough guy" and "nasty" to describe the type of linemen he wants to recruit to Notre Dame. Eric Olsen sounds like a perfect fit.

"I've got the decision out of the way," said the 6-foot-5, 300-pound Olsen, who on Sept. 23 verbally committed to play ajqgv I at Notre Dame. BPP "Now, I can straight-up play l' and maul people." Olsen words alone should bring a smile to Weis' face. So too should the fact that Olsen's Olsen commitment is the second by an offensive lineman, perhaps the most glaring remaining need in the 2006 recruiting class. NCAA recruiting rules prohibit Weis or members of his coaching staff from publicly commenting on an unsigned player.

The first day a player can sign is Feb. 1. Olsen had received 21 offers, most notably from Miami, Boston College, Virginia, Maryland, Tennessee, Syracuse and North Carolina, and had whittled his final list to the Irish and BC. "The school is everything I was looking for," said Olsen, who was recruited by ND assistant coach Bernie Parmalee. "Notre Dame was the perfect fit.

No other school can compare." Olsen also said Weis' personality played a part in his decision. "He's a real type of coach," said Olsen, who comes from the same school as former Irish players Marcus Wilson (running back) and JW Jordan (offensive lineman). "He just reeks respect, and that's a great thing to have as a head coach." Olsen made an unofficial visit to Notre Dame last summer for a camp and plans to make his official visit in December. He was offered a scholarship by ND in early August and is expected to play either guard or center for the Irish. "I'm always trying to pancake people," said Olsen.

"Tenacity is my strong point" Page 4 Week of October 3-October 9, 2005 Irish By the end of the third quarter, Parris, who entered the game with 17 receptions for 347 yards and seven touchdowns, had even the officials working the sideline down markers wondering about his stats and raving about his sure hands. Parris was one of two Notre Dame-bound high school seniors on the field for St. Ignatius, a perennial Cleveland high school powerhouse. While Parris works only on offense, John Ryan, his classmate and best friend since the age of 8, did a little something on both sides of the ball. The 6-5, 235-pound Ryan, who chose Notre Dame over Boston College one month prior to Parris, caught two passes for 25 yards from his tight end spot, carried once for two yards as a fullback and had one tackle and one pass deflection from his future college home left defensive end.

Quiet for the first two quarters while the St. Ignatius offensive linemen worked to decipher Perm's defense, which blitzed quarterback Rudy Kirbus on nearly every play, Parris tried to keep his frustration in check as he headed to the locker room for the 20-minute intermission. "They're covering me one-on-one the whole time," he told Kyle after making three catches for 54 yards in the first half. Kyle absorbed the words, nodded his head and made a mental note find a way to get the ball to No. 1 1 who could simply grab anything and run past the Penn secondary.

He did just that in the second half, almost always with scoring results. "Usually, we don't see teams that send the house and leave him one-on-one," Ryan said. "The first half we didn't have an answer. The second half, we made those adjustments." Parris returned in the third quarter to snare a 64-yard scoring strike off a slant, then headed for Kirbus as the Wildcats prepared for the extra point. "Gimmie that rock!" Parris shouted.

Parris returned to run a perfect post route for another score, this one for 24 yards, then demonstrated his ability to make the tough catch in traffic. A 13-yard pass down the middle of the field to Ryan set up Ignatius on a 3rd-and-goal from the Penn 3 as Parris lined up wide right. Kirbus took the snap and dropped in the pocket before rolling left. Parris broke to the goal line at the snap, then raced the length of the end zone with his eyes on Kirbus. Just as Parris reached the left corner, he snared a quick flip from Kirbus and was belted by a host of Kings-men defenders before score No.

3. "In crunch times especially, you go to your athlete," Kyle said. "That's what Robby is." By TOM N0IE Irish Sports Report Gasping to catch his next breath as he lay flat on the sideline Sept 23, Cleveland (Ohio) St. Ignatius High School wide receiver Robby Parris still had enough energy to smile. The 6-foot-4, 190-pound standout wideout, who chose Notre Dame over Michigan this past summer, almost single-handedly made sure Penn High School football fans went home disappointed on the cool fall evening.

Following a first half that left many in the stands wondering what all fuss was about, Parris returned from intermission and proved worthy of a Notre Dame scholarship. He caught seven passes for 186 yards and four touchdowns in just under 24 minutes in the Wildcats' 41-19 victory over the Mishawaka, school, which sits just a few miles from the ND campus. "I'll take getting the wind knocked out of me to help my team with a touchdown every day," Parris said with another smile afterward. "It was a big touchdown to take some pressure off the defense." Parris finished with 10 receptions for 240 yards and the four scores. "I hope he can play for Notre Dame," said veteran Ignatius coach Chuck Kyle.

"Robby's a special kid." Sports Report MAGENTA BLACK ISR.