Since the 2017 class, every single Power Five caliber prospect from Nebraska has signed with the Cornhuskers.

For example, the top five recruits in Nebraska last cycle were Power Five talents, and all five signed in-state. In the current class, the No. 1-ranked prospect in Nebraska in Zavier Betts is committed to Nebraska. But today, Xavier Watts broke that streak by choosing Notre Dame.

Before he got there, his recruitment kicked off back on Jan. 27, 2018 when Purdue put Watts on the map with his first Power Five offer. Iowa State became his second just four days later before Watts attended Nebraska’s Junior Day on March 31 (2018), leaving without an offer.

After adding an offer from Minnesota in May, Watts returned to Nebraska for an unofficial visit on Sept. 1. Although he left without an offer once again, he’d add the Cornhuskers to his offer list the next month (Oct. 20) along with Northwestern and Wisconsin (Oct. 15). By then, he’d taken his first trip to South Bend, a game day visit on Sept. 29 (Stanford).

That fall, Watts was making an argument as the best athlete in the state, capping off an admirable junior season with 11 receptions for 159 yards and two touchdowns in his state championship win on Nov. 19. At the same time, those around Burke High School claim he’s the best basketball in the program.

On the year, he posted 67 catches for 1,093 yards and 14 touchdowns while his 58 tackles, 4 ½ tackles for loss, five interceptions, and six pass breakups played a significant role defensively.

Having connected with Watts during his unofficial visit in September, Notre Dame extended its offer on Jan. 26 following a Kansas State offer three days prior.

“It all started when (the coaching staff) all followed me (on Twitter) about three weeks ago,” Watts told Irish Illustrated in January. “Coach (DelVaughn) Alexander said he really liked my film, they’d all watched it as a staff and really enjoyed it. He said coach (Tom) Rees, the quarterbacks coach was coming to my school.

“We talked on the phone Saturday, saying that they offered me a full-ride, that they really liked my film, they really think I’m a really good player and would fit in at Notre Dame.

“(Rees) is really cool. Seemed like a really good coach. I felt comfortable talking to him.”

While the Irish coaching staff raved about Watts, an athlete who was seen as a four-star talent, offers from Tennessee (Feb. 19) and Michigan (Feb. 27) followed shortly after. Through March and early-April, he added a Louisville offer and took a round of unofficial visits to Minnesota, Nebraska, and Wisconsin.

Watts returned to Notre Dame for his third visit on April 10, a successful trip for the Irish. Along with meeting current players in Braden Lenzy, Jafar Armstrong, Joe Wilkins, and Chris Finke, Watts spoke with the head coach and looked into the finer details.

“They’re letting me know that I could be a big piece of their offense, that I can really make a difference and that they see me playing slot and (out wide),” Watts told Irish Illustrated in April.

“It’s a life-changer. You go there and if you do the right thing, get your work done, get your degree, you’re pretty much set up for life,” Watts said. “You get connections, you get a good job, things like that.

“I went to the campus and everything was so nice about it, so perfect. It was clean, just such a nice campus.”

Watts left South Bend claiming Notre Dame would be in the mix until decision day, a claim that would prove to be true. Despite his top six announced on June 10, the Irish formed a clear-cut top two with the Cornhuskers through the spring and into the summer

Although multiple trips to his in-state program worried Irish fans, Watts remained in close contact with the Notre Dame coaching staff who he’d see once again on the weekend of June 21 – 23, his official visit.

“I spent the most time with coach Alexander and coach (Chip) Long,” Watts told Tom Loy following his visit. “They just wanted me to know how important I was to them and how they would use me in their offense.

“They want to move me all over the field. They said they’re going to find ways of getting me the ball. They see me as a playmaker and an explosive one.”

In speaking with sources close to the recruitment following that visit, Irish Illustrated learned that it appeared Watts had come about as close as he could to officially committing the Fighting Irish during his visit. But to feel confident in that decision, he wanted to take time to mull it over at home in Omaha.

This gave time for Nebraska to create doubt about a potential pledge to the Irish. But in recent days, Irish Illustrated learned that Watts would be Irish in due time.

According to Tom Loy, Watts actually made his final decision on Monday during a phone call with Long and Alexander. There was some smoke floating around about him and Nebraska, with some even believing that the Huskers were now the team to beat. In fact, that information got back to those in South Bend and the staff reached out to Watts to find out exactly what was going on. Watts wasted no time during that phone call and put Notre Dame at ease, as he informed them that there was nothing to the reports out there and that he was officially committed to Notre Dame.

Irish Illustrated continued to report that we remained strong in our feeling that Notre Dame would land him, which proved accurate throughout.

As we saw today, Watts made it official. A rare miss for the Cornhuskers, Notre Dame closed the deal which meant it may have closed the 2020 wide receiver class on a high note.

A 4.0 GPA student with exciting athleticism, Watts adds another high-potential piece to one of Brian Kelly’s best offensive classes. And although it might not appear to be as flashy of a recruiting win as others in the class, edging the in-state Huskers for his pledge was a major win in itself.