Defensive recruiting during the tenure of former defensive coordinator Brian Vangorder was generally pretty terrible. The only thing he was less effective at than stoping opposing offenses was luring elite talent to South Bend. That all started to change almost immediately following his departure with the class of 2018 and looks to be clearly in the rearview with the defensive class of 2019 already shaping up to be one of the best of the Brian Kelly era.
If there were any lingering concerns about the recruiting momentum from 2018 under Mike Elko falling off in 2019 now that he ran off to Texas A&M, new defensive coordinator Clark Lea and recruiting coordinator Mike Elston have firmly put them to bed for now.