By now it’s become obvious. Former NFL players have given Marcus Freeman’s program their stamp of approval. The numbers just keep adding up with their sons electing to join Notre Dame and wide receiver **Devin Fitzgerald** is the latest to do so.
The son of all-time great Larry Fitzgerald, Devin is an individual whose stock has continued to rise in recent months. He’s an ascending prospect who has experienced a ton of development over the last year and his arrow is pointing way up heading into his senior season.
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 205
Projected Position: Wide receiver
ISD Grade: 90 (4-star)
National Average Grade: 89.5 (4-star)
What he does best:
The apple didn’t fall far from the tree when it came to big time ball skills. Fitzgerald has great hands and body control just like his old man.
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If the ball is anywhere near his vicinity, he can go up and get it.
His compete level really sticks out. It’s competing for the ball on contested catches and when the ball is in his hands. He fights to maximize yardage and finish.
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While he wouldn’t be classified as a burner, he has shown some real juice after the catch. Good hands help with that as he’s ready to catch the ball in stride and has some giddy up.
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What he needs to improve:
A lot of it with him has to do with his physical development and we’ve already seen quite a bit of that this offseason. He’s bigger and stronger than he was as a junior and has looked more explosive out of his breaks in 7on7. He’s going to be able to handle press coverage much better as well.
He’s a good route runner at this stage of his development, but he’s only scratching the surface in that regard.
What’s his ceiling?
Highly respected wide receiver coach Margin Hooks has worked with Fitzgerald this offseason and spoke about him adapting to the environment he was in while working with other elite wide receiver recruits and current college football players. That’s the kind of thing that can be huge for him going forward because Fitzgerald is a bit of a late bloomer in many ways. He’s literally grown a significant amount with his height and weight since he started high school.
It’s a little bit similar to the son of another all-time great who is already on Notre Dame’s roster. Bryce Young had significant physical development throughout high school and he went from someone who was considered a raw project into one of the top edge prospects in his recruiting class.
Fitzgerald might not experience that same meteoric rise in the rankings, but I think we’re going to continue to see that growth on the field as a senior and throughout his college football career at Notre Dame. I think he can develop into a very good boundary receiver. It might take him some time before he makes a significant impact, but he has potential to become a legitimate NFL prospect.
I think the type of player he can become is former Stanford WR Michael Wilson, but with better ball skills. Injuries stifled his final seasons at Stanford, but he was a physical and highly competitive player who ended up as a day two pick for the Arizona Cardinals.
Who he could be:
Former Stanford WR Michael Wilson
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