2022 legacy walk-on Leo Scheidler talks Notre Dame offer: ‘I'm still waiting for someone to pinch me’

Lake Forest (Ill.) High senior Leo Scheidler has been making the 125-mile journey to Notre Dame his entire life. His parents went to school there, and his older brother, Eddie, is a rising senior safety on the football team.

But this time was different.

Scheidler, who grew up with dreams of going to Notre Dame, received an offer to play football for the Irish as a preferred walk-on on Tuesday. This past weekend, he visited campus for the first time knowing that he will be a student-athlete there starting this summer.

“It still hasn’t sunk in,” Scheidler said with noticeable joy in his voice. “I’m still waiting for someone to pinch me.”

Eddie took his brother on a tour of campus during the visit. Leo had done campus tours before, but now he viewed the school through an entirely new lens.

“He showed me the dorms, showed me which one I should want to be in because it’s close to everything,” Scheidler added. “I’m walking around thinking this is my school.”

PROMOTION: Sign up for just $1 for first year at Blue & Gold

Scheidler has played nearly every position on the football field at some point, including quarterback, but the Irish plan to have him start at wide receiver. He’s content with that, but he’d be content with anything. After all, he’s going to be a football player at Notre Dame.

“I just love being on offense,” Scheidler said. “I like having the ball in my hands. Quarterback is fun, but I know I’m not the typical quarterback. I could also play defense because I have a lot of experience there. Honestly, wherever they need me, I can play. I’ll be ready for the challenge.”

Scheidler’s relationship with Rees started on a school tour

The Lake Forest senior received his offer via a phone call from Notre Dame offensive coordinator Tommy Rees on Tuesday afternoon while he was at basketball practice.

“I wasn’t expecting it,” Scheidler said with a laugh. “My coach walked in with my phone, and I saw Tommy’s contact, so I sprinted out of the gym and picked it up.”

Rees, a 2010 Lake Forest graduate himself, extended the offer, telling Scheidler Notre Dame would love to have him.

“He kept it pretty short because he knew that I had practice, and he wanted to give me time to call my parents and my older brother,” Scheidler added. “I was at a loss of words when he called me. I didn’t know what to say.”

Prior to high school, Scheidler had met the former Irish quarterback a couple of times in passing due to his Lake Forest connections, but they had not developed any sort of relationship. That started to change one day in a woodcraft class during Scheidler’s freshman year.

“When Tommy was recruiting (current Notre Dame defensive lineman and Lake Forest graduate) Rylie Mills, I was a freshman,” Scheidler said. “I was in a woodcraft class taught by my football coach, Chuck Spagnoli, and he would always have students in the class walk the coaches around. I remember one day Tommy came in to interview Rylie, and Coach Spagnoli had me walk Tommy around the school.

“That was the first time I really got to talk to him. I’d met him a couple of times before, but that was the first opportunity I had to just be straight up with him and ask ‘What do I need to do to get into this school, and how do I get on your radar?’ He told me ‘Play your game, don’t think about it too much, and we’ll find you.’ I really took that to heart. I just needed to work my tail off and hope I’d get noticed by them.”

Scheidler went through high school football, playing every position asked of him. Last summer, the rising senior went to a camp at Notre Dame, another step required to show continued interest.

“Then I remember the beginning of last season, my football coach pulled me aside and asked if I still wanted to try to get into Notre Dame,” Scheidler said. “Of course, I said yes.”

Spagnoli started communicating with Notre Dame director of scouting and father of Tommy Rees, Bill. Scheidler’s senior season went incredibly well, as he played quarterback and Lake Forest made a run to the state semifinals.

“Communication kept going between Mr. Rees and my coach, and on Tuesday, I finally got the call that everything worked out,” Scheidler added. “It’s just awesome to see everything play through.”

PROMOTION: Sign up for just $1 for first year at Blue & Gold

The walk-on has his list of goals ready to go

Scheidler is not yet on campus, but he is already thinking about his time in South Bend in great detail.

“I’ve got a lot already,” the senior said when asked about his goals for Notre Dame. “Honestly, I want to try to play starting my sophomore year, whether that be on special teams or just getting a few reps at wide receiver. I definitely want to see the field sophomore year and hopefully earn a scholarship my junior year.”

One of the best ways to work toward achieving goals like those Scheidler established is to talk with someone who has done it. Enter former Irish wide receiver and walk-on Chris Finke, who signed a reserve/future contract with the Kansas City Chiefs in January.

“I was actually thinking about (direct messaging) Chris Finke on Instagram to see what it took for him to not only get on the field but be a captain,” Scheidler said. “He’s obviously in the NFL now. I just want to learn his mindset and see what it took for him to accomplish those goals so I can hopefully accomplish mine.”

Scheidler has checked one dream off of the list, and he’s ready to go full steam ahead toward the next.