Rice transfer CB Tre’Shon Devones to visit Notre Dame
Notre Dame needs veteran cornerback depth after the departure of graduate student Clarence Lewis. The Irish have identified a candidate to fill that need: Rice graduate transfer Tre’Shon Devones.
Devones will visit Notre Dame on Thursday, he told On3’s Pete Nakos Wednesday afternoon. 247Sports was first with the news.
After his first four seasons with Rice were marred by injuries, the 6-foot, 187-pound Devones broke out in 2023 with 11 passes defended and 2 interceptions for the Owls. He was also credited with 45 tackles (30 solo) and he earned an 80.2 coverage grade, according to Pro Football Focus.
Devones has one year of eligibility remaining, earned due to both the COVID-19 exception and a medical redshirt after missing all of 2021 with an unspecified injury. He visited Colorado last month, and he’s planning to visit Houston and Tulane as well.
Devones was a three-time All-District player at Duncanville (Texas) High, one of the major football powerhouses in Texas. However, he entered Rice as a walk-on in 2019. He received a scholarship during fall camp, started the final four games of his freshman season and finished with 15 tackles.
In 2020, Devones started the first three games before suffering an injury on Nov. 21 of that year that would keep him out of the 2021 season. He returned on Oct. 15, 2022 after nearly a two-year absence, finally making it back to the starting lineup in Week 12 against UTSA.
This past season wasn’t just a breakout year for Devones; it was the culmination of his long road back from what he implied were multiple setbacks in his recovery process.
“I’ve been hit with injuries that nobody has ever heard of before, even me,” Devones said Oct. 24, according to The Roost.
Devones entered the transfer portal on Feb. 15. He is the No. 80 transfer in this cycle — out of all players, not just uncommitted ones — according to the On3 Industry Ranking, and the No. 12 cornerback.
The On3 Industry Ranking lists Devones as the No. 9 available transfer and third-best available cornerback.
Cornerback is one of the strongest positions on Notre Dame’s roster, but only at the top of the depth chart with junior Benjamin Morrison, junior Jaden Mickey and sophomore Christian Gray. Morrison underwent shoulder surgery in March, but he’s expected to be ready for the 2024 season.
Behind those three, senior Chance Tucker and sophomore Micah Bell are the only scholarship cornerbacks on Notre Dame’s spring roster. Freshmen Leonard Moore and Karson Hobbs are arriving in the summer.
