Notre Dame may have missed out on Jashon Cornell and Justin Hilliard on Wednesday, but they won the commitment of jumbo receiver Miles Boykin. The Illinois native chose Notre Dame over Michigan State, Michigan, Ohio State, Florida and a slew of other offers.
At a shade over 6-foot-3 and 225 pounds, Boykin is one of the most physically impressive receiving prospects in the recruiting cycle. Originally projected by some as a tight end, Boykin has spent the summer attending national camps and combines, on a mission to prove his ability to play out wide and not attached. He’s done that, dominating in drills and putting up a more than respectable 40-yard dash time.
For the Irish, Boykin is a perfect fit. They’ve had great success with big receivers and detached tight ends, making it fairly irrelevant what position Boykin is officially listed at on the roster, as he’ll play a role we’ve seen since Brian Kelly came to town.
When discussing his commitment, Boykin spoke with Irish Illustrated’s Jake Brown ($), telling him about his growing comfort level in South Bend.
“Really it just feels like home there,” Boykin told Irish Illustrated Wednesday. “When I took my overnight visit there I knew I wanted to be there. I had to just take one visit to Michigan State because they were really close behind to see if I felt the same way about Notre Dame. Then after that I just knew I wanted to be there.”
Boykin told Brown that he’ll start his career at the X receiver, learning the outside receiver spot before moving around.
He’s Notre Dame’s 17th commitment of the cycle, a class that might be able to grow with the news that Nile Sykes could be transferring out of South Bend after the summer session is over.
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