Pickerington (Ohio) Central four-star wide receiver Lorenzo Styles Jr. is one of the top playmakers in the class of 2021 and today, the explosive talent announced his commitment to Notre Dame.
The 6-1,175-pounder chose the Fighting Irish over Ohio State, Michigan, Auburn, Florida, Mississippi State, Northwestern, Penn State and many, many others.
“I just want to be someone that can shed a positive light upon my community,” said Styles. “Through this recruiting process I have developed good relationships with many coaches. I am thankful for the opportunities they have provided me, but I can ultimately only pick one school. With hard work and commitment, I have been able to become the player as well as person I am today. To all of my coaches now as well as prior, thank you for getting me to where I am. Thank you to my friends and family who have supported me throughout this journey. The biggest thank you to my dad, for he saw potential in me at a young age, and continues to challenge me as I grow into the player I want to become With everything that comes with the recruiting process, finding your best fit is a hard decision. Without having your feet on the ground it may be a blur. With that being said, I know my values. God, Country, Notre Dame. Go Irish.”
This is a massive win for the Notre Dame coaching staff, but not one that came about recently. This has actually been done for quite a while, hence the optimism from Irish Illustrated. Styles actually informed insider Tom Loy of his decision back in early August on the day that he contacted both offensive coordinator Chip Long and wide receivers coach DelVaughn Alexander with his decision. The Fighting Irish were never worried about him going back on his word and the staff was never fearful that he would have a change of heart. Styles has been 100 percent upfront and honest with Long and Alexander the entire time and made it known early that he was going to visit Ohio State one more time late in the process and then commit to Notre Dame following a visit to South Bend as long as nothing changed on either side. A man of his word, Styles followed through and went public, finally, with his decision that had been done for a few months.
According to sources close to this recruitment, one thing is clear — Notre Dame couldn’t be more fired up about Styles’ addition to an already loaded 2021 class headed to play for the Fighting Irish. Styles is an outstanding two-way athlete with legitimate 4.3 speed in the 40-yard dash, excellent agility and explosiveness, and instincts that set him a part at both receiver and defensive back. Despite the fact that he’s very good in the secondary, Notre Dame absolutely wants him on offense and he’ll play early in South Bend. Long and Alexander have big plans for him and want him to catch a ton of passes from elite quarterback commit Tyler Buchner, a top talent in the 2021 class. If head coach Brian Kelly wants to try him out in the secondary, in the end it’s his call to make, but he’s going to have to pry Styles from Long and that won’t be easy. His game-changing abilities are very much coveted on the offensive side of the ball.
Styles, who 247Sports compares to former college standout and NFL veteran Michael Crabtree, is ranked as the No. 102 overall player in the country, No. 21 wide receiver nationally and No. 4 recruit in Ohio from the class of 2021 per the 247Sports Composite Rankings. 247Sports ranks him as the No. 120 overall talent in his class, No. 18 prospect at his position in the country and No. 6 target from his home state.
