The Notre Dame football team was named Defensive Player of the Year

Notre Dame football boasts one of the best 2025 recruiting classes, and one of those players is Illinois defensive end Joseph Reiff of York High School.

The 6-foot-2, 220-pound player has the potential to be the Irish’s next at the position, which in this case has proven to be extremely deep as the Irish have struggled with injuries all season. Reiff was recently named the Dupage County Co-Defensive Player of the Year, which also doubles as the Red Grange Player of the Year.

Reiff will enter the program with high expectations as he is ranked No. 428 overall according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings. The defensive end committed to the Irish over a year ago and dropped his recruitment, so his offer list hasn’t grown since then.

I’ve already seen Reiff play once this fall and will again this weekend when they take on Naperville Central for a chance to play for the state title.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWitear on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinion.

Follow Mike on X: @MikeFChen