Notre Dame just added a commitment from four-star Ethan Long. The safety out of Greenwich (Conn.) Brunswick is the second four-star to commit to the Fighting Irish this month. Long chose Notre Dame over Michigan, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Penn State.

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"I've been praying every night to God," Long said. "This is the biggest decision of my life. You don't choose Notre Dame, Notre Dame chooses you. Every time I'm on that campus, I just feel like I'm home and I feel like it's the place to be and it's going to set me up for my future and prepare me for life.

"Last time I was there was for the Ohio State game," he said. "They fly around. The thing is, they play with heart and they play with discipline and they have a chip on their shoulder. People doubted them and they took that to heart and proved people wrong. Watching them play was amazing. They really did their thing. They stood out and made a difference in the game and made a change.

"My relationship with coach Golden is the most important thing," said Long. "It's so strong and you can't break. There is so much energy and love between us - Golden, O'Leary, Freeman, Chad. We all laugh and have a great time together. We all know it's business. We're there to win a National Championship. We're there to get me to be the best player I can be. We all understand that. We're all on the same page. We know all know each other's goals so that's a big thing in our relationship.

"It's a great group of guys," he said of Notre Dame's 2025 recruiting class. "They all want to compete. They all have the same mindset that I have and they want it badly. Those are the guys I'm going to be with for three to four years. I've only been in contact with Ivan Taylor really, the safety, because we went on the visits together. It was great talking to him."

Notre Dame has the early lead in the 2025 team rankings and they aren't slowing down. The addition of Long is a big one for the Fighting Irish. The early graduate tallied 60 tackles, four interceptions, and three forced fumbles last season.

Long is an impressive athlete who could play multiple positions on the defensive side of the ball. He has the speed and ball hawking abilities to be find success as a safety. Long is a physical tackler and should make receivers think twice about running across the middle. For those same reasons, Long could end up playing closer to the box as a linebacker in certain situations. His athleticism and ability to quickly read and react to plays could make him difference maker inside the box. Long will need a year or two to develop physically and adjust to the speed of the college game but the natural tools he brings to the field should allow him to find his footing relatively quickly.