When Rock Hill (S.C.) South Pointe safety J’Zavien Currence reported his Notre Dame football offer on May 6, the 2026 prospect noted that his idol, Nick McCloud, capped off his college career for the Fighting Irish. So, it only made sense that the top-100 four-star recruit wanted McCloud to accompany him on his first trip to South Bend.
The 6-foot-3, 210-pound Currence and the current New York Giants cornerback visited campus together Monday. It was a memorable experience and an outlier for Currence, the On3 Industry Ranking’s No. 97 overall player and No. 9 safety in the class, who had reported 35 previous unofficial college recruiting visits. Before this week, Currence had never been on a visit with McCloud.
“It was nice,” Currence told Blue & Gold on Thursday. “He was showing me the ins and outs. We got to watch the players work out and see the campus. …. It was nice to watch the guys compete.”
Currence’s relationship with McCloud goes back to his early youth. The rising high school junior’s father coached McCloud, and the elder McCloud also works at South Pointe. That connection was key in initiating Currence’s interest in the Fighting Irish.
The On3 Industry Ranking’s No. 2 prospect in South Carolina has 41 scholarship offers, including 34 from power conference programs. The in-state Gamecocks, along with Florida, Georgia, Florida State, Texas A&M, Kentucky, Alabama and Ohio State, are among the teams that have his attention.
Currence, a first-team All-American per MaxPreps, has been to each one of those schools over the last year. His relationship with McCloud and the personality of the Notre Dame coaching staff are the key separators from a competitive pack.
“The people there have kindness and are good people,” he said. “They are in a good spot. They work hard, and they have good people around them. The former players gave $150 million back to build a new facility. That says to me that people love Notre Dame.”
Meeting Marcus Freeman a key part of J’Zavien Currence’s Notre Dame unofficial visit
Though Currence spent most of his Notre Dame visit alongside McCloud, he met with head coach Marcus Freeman. That conversation was a key part of the visit.
“I talked to him in his office,” Currence said. “He is a very genuine dude. It’s easy to like guys that coach like that. He sells you with things he means to say. You can tell he’s about what he’s talking about. He has my best interest in mind. He is very genuine.”
While Currence was on campus, Freeman took the opportunity to pitch the talented safety on how Notre Dame could help him excel on and off the field.
“He was basically telling me to do what’s best for me outside of football,” Currence said. “But then, being a football player. He was talking about if I committed to a place and never played another down, what could a place do for me? Because Notre Dame offers everything from football and beyond.”
Aside from meeting with Freeman, Currence said the Golden Dome was his favorite part on campus: “It didn’t look real.”
Currence hopes to get a second glimpse of it and the Irish when they face Florida State on Nov. 9. Until then, look for McCloud to help Notre Dame maintain its strong standing for the South Pointe prodigy.
“The players that went there love Notre Dame,” he said. “That’s something big to me.”
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