Sweden’s Jordan Genmark-Heath to play as true freshman at Notre Dame?

According to Frank Vitovitch of UHND.com, it looks like Notre Dame University head coach Brian Kelly will be inserting Swedish freshman safety Jordan Genmark-Heath into the lineup this year. He is one of six freshmen Kelly said that he and his staff have decided will probably play following two weeks of training camp.

With less than two weeks to go before the 2017 kicks off, this is huge news for the Swedish native.

When asked about Genmark-Heath, Kelly responded:

“Jordan (Genmark-Heath) is off the bubble in a sense that I’ve made a decision right now that we are moving towards playing him.”

Special teams weapon?

Genmark-Heath would seem to have the best fit on special teams where he could be a real weapon and could he could also get into the mix at safety – especially if Alohi Gilman is not ruled eligible for this fall.

Vitovitch writes that “… the safety position still has more questions than answers so it could be all hands on deck in the fall. With Kelly’s definitive statement on Genmark-Heath though, it appears as though a special teams role at least is in the cards.”

The Swede finished a sparkling four year high school career at San Diego Cathedral Catholic and was recruited heavily by a number of major Division I schools including California before signing with Notre Dame.

The 6’2″, 205 lb Heath grew up in Sweden and initially started playing football with the Arlanda Jets organization before his stepfather, Krister Genmark, received a green card through the Diversity Visa Lottery, and moved the family to San Diego in 2013.