Irish adding Eamon McOsker as a preferred walk-on

Feb 15, 2012, 2:26 PM EDT

It looks like the Irish football program still isn’t done adding players to the class of 2012. Notre Dame has made an offer to two-way player Eamon McOsker of Loyola High in Los Angeles, and McOsker will join the Irish roster next season as a preferred walk-on. The Los Angeles Times reports that McOsker was committed to play his college football at Penn before he took the Irish up on their offer.

Here’s Eric Sondheimer’s report:

Standout safety Eamon McOsker of Los Angeles Loyola had committed to Pennsylvania several weeks ago, but now he has decided to play for Notre Dame as a preferred walk-on.

“I thought it was too good to pass up,” he said. “It’s been my dream to play for them.”

McOsker has been to Notre Dame at least 10 times. His older brother, Garrity, attends the South Bend, Ind., campus, and his father has worked for the school in development.

McOsker was the defensive player of the year in the Serra League.

The Irish picked up a productive player last year from Southern California with the addition of preferred walk-on Joe Schmidt, who chose Notre Dame over some scholarship offers after an impressive career at Orange County powerhouse Mater Dei. Schmidt made an impact early, playing on special teams and consistently making the travel squad. McOsker, who doesn’t have a Rivals profile and seemed virtually ignored by major D-I programs, did win the defensive player of the year for the Serra League. To put that in perspective, the offensive player of the year, teammate Kodi Whitfield, had over a dozen offers and signed with Stanford.

At six-foot-two, 193-pounds, McOsker’s an intriguing enough athlete and his highlights show a rangy safety that also did some damage as a wide receiver. He played in a league that produced former Irish quarterback Dayne Crist and one-time tight end Joe Fauria, and at the same high school as one-time Irish target Anthony Barr played. It doesn’t cost the Irish anything to bring him in, and he certainly profiles as the prototype safety in Kelly’s defense, so it’s essentially a can’t lose situation.