Former Notre Dame safety Houston Griffith gets Power Five staff position
Former Notre Dame safety Houston Griffith has found a way to continue his football career. On Monday, Griffith announced on social media that he joined the University of Illinois football program.
According to the University of Illinois athletics website, Griffith’s position with the program is a “recruiting assistant.” He started the position in July 2023.
Griffith concluded his Notre Dame playing career in 2022 after five seasons with the program. The former safety played 62 games for the Fighting Irish, a program record for most career games played.
In his final Notre Dame season, Griffith had 33 tackles (12 solo) and a tackle for loss in 13 games. He also started in two outings. Griffith’s best statistical season was in 2021, when he started in 12 of 13 games and had 38 tackles, 23 of which were solo. He had two pass breakups as a freshman and another one as a sophomore.
Griffith finished his college career with 104 tackles (61 solo), three pass breakups and two tackles for loss.
As a high schooler, Griffith originally attended Chicago Mount Carmel before transferring to Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy. He finished the 2018 recruiting cycle as a four-star recruit and No. 71 overall player, No. 12 cornerback and No. 15 prospect in Florida, per the On3 Industry Ranking.
Griffith’s father, Howard Griffith, was a standout running back for the Illini from 1987-90. The elder Griffith became team captain and broke several records, including Jim Brown’s 48-point game NCAA record and Harold “Red” Grange’s school-record 33 touchdowns in a career, per the University’s athletics website.
Illinois’ 2024 recruiting class currently ranks No. 48 in the 2024 Industry Ranking Football Team Recruiting Rankings. They have 17 commits, 16 of which are three-star prospects. Illinois has one four-star recruit verbally committed in Chandler (Ariz.) High running back Ca’lil Valentine. Illinois’ recruiting class ranks 13th in the Big 10.
Valentine is a high school teammate of Notre Dame three-star safety commit Kennedy Urlacher. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Urlacher is the No. 643 overall player, No. 61 safety and No. 13 prospect in Arizona in the 2024 recruiting cycle, per the On3 Industry Ranking. Urlacher committed to the Irish on May 1 and had reported an unofficial college recruiting visit to Champaign, Illinois.
Notre Dame currently has the No. 12 recruiting class with a score of 90.885. The Irish have 13 four-star recruits and nine three-star prospects pledged in the 2024 class.
