Dave Archibald thought his eyes might be lying.

The first-year St. Viator coach did a double take during a game this past season when he saw his star tight end was being triple-teamed. Archibald hadn't seen such a thing at the high school level.

The initial surprise wore off the more Archibald saw Cole Kmet play.

The 6-foot-5, 230-pound Kmet — one of 21 players who signed with Notre Dame on Wednesday — had come a long way from the kid who just the season before had lined up at quarterback against Nazareth's Julian Love, now an Irish defensive back.

Kmet returned full time to his home at tight Casinomaxi end this year and was named an Army All-American.

During a 31-21 loss to Niles Notre Dame, Kmet had 10 catches for 201 yards and two touchdowns and recovered an onside kick.

He finished the season with 48 catches in eight games for 754 yards and four touchdowns for the Lions, for whom he also plays baseball.

"He blocked like crazy, and we also tried to get him 10 targets a game," Archibald said.

Kmet was one of 10 four-star prospects to sign with the Irish. They added a trio of three-star defensive players on signing day: ends Myron Tagavailoa-Amosa of Hawaii and Kofi Wardlow of Washington, D.C., and safety Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah of Virginia.

Archibald said Kmet never wavered on his commitment to Notre Dame, which went 4-8 last season and has seven new assistant coaches. One departed coach, Scott Booker, was Kmet's primary recruiter.

His next head coach, Brian Kelly, expressed excitement about the prospect of Kmet playing with fellow incoming tight end Brock Wright, an early enrollee who is Notre Dame's highest-ranked recruit.

"We don't think there can be a better tandem at the tight end position," Kelly said.

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Irish class at a glance

Instant impact: Brian Kelly wasted little time heaping expectations on CJ Holmes, comparing him to another C.J. — Prosise, the Seahawks running back who started out as a receiver at Notre Dame. Kelly said Holmes will play running back and receiver. The Irish already have a package in place for the early enrollee, and Kelly said he will be in the running for playing time right away. "We're going to force-feed him a little bit," Kelly said. Expect tight ends Cole Kmet and Brock Wright to see early playing time too.

Under the radar: Three-star wide receiver Michael Young received plenty of interest in numbers, but not many national powers pursued him. Oregon and Texas A&M offered the slot receiver from Louisiana, who could compete right away with a talented group of receivers led by Equanimeous St. Brown and Kevin Stepherson.

Local angle: In addition to St. Viator's Kmet, the Irish signed safety Isaiah Robertson from Neuqua Valley. Robertson is one of two safeties in this class and will have had a head start on his freshman season because he's already enrolled.

Irish signees

Player, Pos., Ht., Wt., Hometown/school

David Adams, LB, 6-2, 224, Pittsburgh

Jafar Armstrong, WR, 6-1, 205, Mission, Kan.

*Aaron Banks, OT, 6-7, 315, El Cerrito, Calif.

Avery Davis, QB, 5-11, 192, Cedar Hill, Texas

Jonathan Doerer, K, 6-3, 188, Charlotte, N.C.

Darnell Ewell, DT, 6-4, 295, Norfolk, Va.

Jordan Genmark Heath, S, 6-2, 205, San Diego

Dillan Gibbons, OT, 6-4, 311, Clearwater, Fla.

*Robert Hainsey, G, 6-5, 276, Monroeville, Pa.

Kurt Hinish, DT, 6-2, 283, Pittsburgh

*CJ Holmes, RB, 6-0, 200, Cheshire, Conn.

Cole Kmet, TE, 6-4, 230, St. Viator

Joshua Lugg, OT, 6-7, 293, Wexford, Pa.

Jonathon MacCollister, DE, 6-4, 238, Orlando, Fla.

Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, S, 6-2, 197, Hampton, Va.

*Isaiah Robertson, S, 6-3, 190, Neuqua Valley

Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa, DE, 6-4, 270, Kapolei, Hawaii

Kofi Wardlow, DE, 6-4, 230, Washington, D.C.

Drew White, LB, 6-1, 225, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

*Brock Wright, TE, 6-5, 243, Cypress, Texas

Michael Young, WR, 5-11, 175, Destrehan, La.

*early enrollee

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