Notre Dame commit Michael Mayer makes big impression at The Opening

Incoming Covington Catholic (Alexandria, Kentucky) senior Michael Mayer made a strong impression July 1 at the The Opening, a showcase combine and competition for elite high school football players going on this week in Frisco, Texas.

Mayer, a tight end and linebacker for the Colonels, has verbally committed to Notre Dame. He is ranked No. 1 among 2020 tight ends and in Kentucky by 247sports.com, and was part of the showcase with many other elite players from the Class of 2020.

According to 247sports.com, Mayer was named the “Alpha Dog” on Monday, delineating the top performance among tight ends and wide receivers during one-on-one drills. The site said Mayer “took to the field on Monday for the one-on-one portion of the event and put on a show. It was a dominant showing from start to finish.”

247 Sports national analyst Greg Biggins said, “There was a really strong group of receivers working out but it was tight end Michael Mayer who had the day’s most dominant performance. The Notre Dame commit had multiple acrobatic jump ball catches, got easy separation on throws down the field and didn’t drop a ball that we saw all day. In fact, not only did we not see Mayer drop a ball, we didn’t see him lose a single rep all day. Mayer projects as a possession/third-down pass-catcher as well as a threat down the field.”

Tom Loy of 247sports.com posted a highlight video of Mayer’s performance.

Matt Freeman of Irish Sports Daily, a University of Notre Dame recruiting site, also chronicled his performance on Monday.

Freeman also conducted a video interview with Mayer over the weekend.

“It was awesome to get invited to the Opening finals here,” Mayer said in that video. “I’m excited to be here, excited to learn, excited to get better and to meet new people. I would consider myself a social guy. I want to meet the other Notre Dame commits. It’s really important because we’re going to be playing together for the next three to four years.”

In the video, Mayer said he bonded really well with Notre Dame offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Chip Long.

“I really liked the campus. It’s a beautiful place,” he said. “Every player I talked to was down to earth and they laid it all on the line, telling me what it would be like there.”

The Opening continues through Wednesday and will have 7-on-7 competitions where Mayer is likely to have another chance to showcase his skills.

Mayer had 46 catches for 1,029 yards and 12 touchdowns last year and was the team’s leading tackler, including 18 for loss. He is also a fierce blocker on run plays. Mayer and the Colonels have gone 29-1 the last two seasons, winning a 5A state championship in 2017 and finishing as runner-up last year with a close 20-16 loss to South Warren.