VALLEY ROUNDUP : Blunt Accepts a Scholarship to Notre Dame

All-City Section quarterback Leon Blunt became the first player in San Fernando High’s storied football history to accept a scholarship to Notre Dame when he verbally committed to the school over the weekend.

Blunt was one of 18 high school recruits from throughout the nation who were invited to the South Bend, Ind., campus. According to Blunt, none of the recruits knew beforehand whether they would be offered scholarships.

Saturday, recruits paraded one by one into the office of Notre Dame Coach Lou Holtz, who told each player whether he had made the grade.

“You could tell by the look on their faces when they came out what happened,” Blunt said. “It was crazy.”

Crazy also describes Blunt’s mood when Holtz told him a scholarship was on the table. Holtz told Blunt he would probably play flanker.

Blunt also received offers from Colorado and USC, among others. He satisfied NCAA eligibility requirements on the Scholastic Aptitude Test as a sophomore.

“I didn’t want to go to school in L. A.,” he said. “If (Notre Dame) was going to make an offer, I was gonna go there.”

Blunt, a three-year starter known for his big-play potential, was the Northwest Valley Conference most valuable player last season and co-MVP of the North Valley League this fall.