Legacy receiver Devin Fitzgerald sharpens his skills, forging a path beyond his father's legendary shadow at Notre Dame.
Notre Dame brought in an extremely talented wide receiver class this season; thankfully, all of them are currently on campus as early enrollees. Two of the five receivers brought in had fathers who played in the NFL. Kayden Finley, the son of former Green Bay Packers tight end Jermichael Finley, and Devin Fitzgerald, the son of Hall of Fame wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, are both on campus and going through winter workouts, preparing for the spring.
Both players formed a strong bond throughout the recruiting process and both players are looking to make an immediate impact this upcoming season. For Fitzgerald, it was about finding his footing at the collegiate level, but he's confident in what he brings to the table.
"Obviously, that's the goal but it's really hard to do here at Notre Dame," Fitzgerald answered when asked about getting on the field as a freshman. "It's one of the best colleges in the nation. Everybody here was an amazing recruit in high school. I'm just trying to work my way up the depth chart, learn from the older guys, follow in their footsteps and just go make a name for myself."
Finley, his fellow recruiting class mate, shared a lot about Fitzgerald's game and what he excels at. The Arizona native echoed the same sentiment about Finley's game and what he brings to South Bend.
"If it hits your hands, you've got to catch it," Fitzgerald said. "His game, he's a big guy still, but he's super twitchy. He's super explosive. He can beat you with speed, he can break you down, he's a good route technician and his releases are really good. We work on our releases out here together all the time. We just put the extra work in together. We help each other every day."
Thankfully, both Fitzgerald and Finley didn't wait until they were on campus together at Notre Dame to starting forming that bond to work together and develop their games. That process began back in high school when they were both recruits.
"We have a spot up in Minnesota, and I trained with Coach [Jerry] Sullivan who used to coach in the NFL and coached at LSU. I usually train with him in the summer. I was up in Minnesota, and I just wanted to bring out some of the guys. A couple of the other receivers in my class couldn't make it, but Kaydon made it out, [Noah] Grubbs made it out, and then a couple of my friends from back home. We trained with Coach Sullivan and Justin Jefferson for a week."
We've seen a handful of players at Notre Dame breakout who's dad's played in the NFL. Defensive end Bryce Young, the son of NFL Hall of Famer Bryant Young, is expected to have a big season in 2026. Hopefully, Fitzgerald and Finley do the same in their coming years in South Bend, and it's not beyond the realm of possibility that we see them in 2026. Spring will be a crucial time for both players, especially Fitzgerald in the boundary. But both players are extremely talented and will make their presence felt at Notre Dame for years to come.
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