Marcus Freeman's Notre Dame flips 4-star ATH Antavious Richardson amid Deuce Knight's flip rumors

By Maliha

Modified Oct 02, 2024 10:38 GMT

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The Notre Dame Fighting Irish got a huge boost in its 2025 cycle on Tuesday by receiving the commitment of Antavious Richardson. The four-star athlete originally committed to Georgia State in April before flipping to the USF Bulls in June, making Marcus Freeman's program his third destination.

Notre Dame's 2025 class has been much in discussion in the last few days due to the potential flip of four-star quarterback Deuce Knight to Auburn. The signal-caller spent the weekend with Auburn commits and even uploaded several snaps in the Tigers attire on Monday, which ignited an already heated rumor.

Richardson, a 6-foot-2, 170-pound athlete, runs the offense at quarterback while also excelling in the secondary for Greenville High School in Georgia. He is ranked by the On3 Industry Rankings as the No. 292 overall prospect in the nation, the No. 12 athlete in the 2025 class and the No. 43 recruit in Georgia.

With Antavious Richardson's decommitment, USF is left with 22 players committed to its 2025 class, ranking No. 65 in the nation. He was the only four-star in the cycle, which features three-star prospects like safety Jermichael Gillis, interior offensive lineman Sean Poret and wide receiver Koredell Bartley.

Why did Antavious Richardson flip to Notre Dame?

Notre Dame offered Antavious Richardson on August 23 and despite a late push from Alabama, the Irish program as a whole seemed promising to him.

“I believe in Coach Freeman and his program,” Richardson told On3. “I think that this team is gonna be special! Go Irish.”

The prospect took an official visit to Notre Dame on Sept. 21 during the Miami (Ohio) game, which the Irish won 28-3. He had high praise for the welcoming atmosphere that Notre Dame prides itself on.

“When you go places, you don’t always meet people who are that nice and kind — you don’t always get that atmosphere and culture," Richardson said. "That’s something Notre Dame has that separates itself from a lot of schools. The coaches, players and everyone were nice the whole time. They really want you to feel a part of the team."

The personal touch from the Notre Dame coaching staff was evident as well, especially during a key visit from General Manager Chad Bowden last month.

Statistically, Richardson is having a phenomenal senior season. Through four games of his senior season, he has thrown for 411 yards and five touchdowns as well as rushing for 571 yards along with an additional score while also contributing on defense with 33 tackles and one interception.

He also excels in track, boasting personal bests of 10.68 seconds in the 100 meters and 21.43 seconds in the 200 meters.

Antavious Richardson also understands the importance of a quality education and stated that a degree from Notre Dame will provide a safety net if anything happens to his football career.