Tampa (Fla.) Berkeley Prep defensive end Keon Keeley announced his commitment to Notre Dame on June 28, 2021, picking the Fighting Irish during the summer before his junior year of high school.
He became Notre Dame's first commitment of the 2023 class and was a leader in recruiting other prospects. But after nearly 14 months of being an Irish commit, Keeley backed off his Notre Dame pledge. At the time, he was the No. 12 overall player and No. 1 EDGE in America according to the Rivals Industry Ranking.
As a Notre Dame commit, he visited Florida twice, Ohio State once and Alabama twice. His Irish pledge came so early that he didn't get to make more than a couple trips to other colleges and wanted to get back out on the road. Unfortunately for Notre Dame, that led to his decommitment, and nine days before signing day for the 2023 class, he picked Alabama.
"It was an extremely tough process because I really do love Notre Dame," Keeley told Blue & Gold during the week of All-American Bowl practices before he enrolled at Alabama. "It was my decision and only my decision to go to the University of Alabama. It was strictly my decision, and I could've done whatever I wanted.
"The decommitment process was hard for me. I had a lot of really strong relationships at Notre Dame and still do with some of the commits."
Notre Dame linebacker Drayk Bowen and safety Adon Shuler were close friends with Keeley as prospects, all of whom committed to the Irish early and spent quality time together on South Bend visits. It took a few years, but they'll all star on the same defense as originally planned.
Keeley finished the cycle as a consensus five-star recruit, No. 2 overall player and No. 1 EDGE according to the Rivals Industry Ranking.
He had a tremendous prep career, totaling 133 tackles (64.5 for loss), 37 sacks, 36 quarterback hurries, 1 interception, 5 pass breakups, 2 fumble recoveries, 8 forced fumbles and 1 blocked punt across four seasons.
Keeley didn't see the field at Alabama in 2023, utilizing his redshirt year. As a sophomore in 2024, he played in five games and posted three tackles.
He became a regular contributor for the Crimson Tide this past fall as a redshirt sophomore, posting 16 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 quarterback hurry, 1 pass breakup and 1 blocked punt.
Keeley eclipsed 20 defensive snaps just twice during the season, but both came late in the year -- 25 snaps against Georgia in the SEC Championship Game and 35 against Oklahoma in the first round of the College Football Playoff.
News broke on Jan. 4 that Keon Keeley would be entering the NCAA Transfer Portal, and three days later he and his family were on a plane to South Bend, Ind. for a visit to Notre Dame. Sources told Blue & Gold there was a moment during the visit when Keeley was brought to tears while thinking about finishing his career at a place that's so special to him.
On Monday, Notre Dame made it official. Other powerhouse programs expressed strong interest, but Notre Dame was the only school Keeley visited during his portal recruiting process.