Bernard Closes Out Backfield Needs As No. 17

Following the quick verbal from Gainesville (Ga.) wide receiver and Irish legacy Tai-ler Jones, the Irish offense was able to add another weapon to the arsenal – running back Giovanni Bernard.

"Yea. I committed to Notre Dame," the 5-foot-9, 198-pound prospect confirmed with BlueandGold.com via text.

Bernard, who is ranked by Scout.com as a four-star prospect, the No. 12 running back nationally and the country’s No. 88 overall player, hails from the Notre Dame pipeline of St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

The Irish missed on his early list just two months after receiving a February offer, but they remained among his top eight schools as the summer was coming to an end. Aside from his official visit to Notre Dame for the Oct. 16 weekend, he had also been to Nebraska, Oregon State and Tennessee.

Bernard had scheduled the trip to South Bend in mid August, but he was considering missing it and revisiting later in the season. Apparently a visit from Irish head coach Charlie Weis during the bye weekend was all that was needed for the STA player as he was quickly added back to the visit list.

In his junior season, Bernard had 160 rushing attempts for 1,528 yards and 18 touchdowns, plus eight receptions for 127 yards and one touchdown. He rushed the ball 105 times for 698 yards and seven touchdowns, adding nine receptions for 96 yards and two touchdowns in 2007. His brother, Yvenson, played college football at Oregon State.

Despite the connection to the Beavers, Bernard’s connection to Notre Dame held stronger as he became the No. 17 verbal commitment of the 2010 recruiting class. His pledge closes out the needs in the Irish offense backfield for this recruiting haul.

• Giovanni Bernard Film Review

Check back with BlueandGold.com for more on Notre Dame’s newest verbal commitment.