(WSBT) Notre Dame has received commitments from a number of their top recruiting targets for next season. One of the first players to commit came from right here in our backyard.

"My mom named me after Braxston Banks, who played at Notre Dame. And just growing up watching them, it's always been a dream, so once the opportunity came I just took it right away,” said Penn senior Braxston Cave.

Cave was the second player to commit to the Irish, and knew from the start it was where he wanted to be.

"It's going to be an awesome feeling,” he said. “Half my family said that they want to come to the game just to watch me run out of the tunnel and then just leave after that!"

At 6 feet 2 inches tall and almost 300 pounds, the center has the potential to be the kind of physical drive blocker the Irish offensive line needs.

"He knows his way around the weight room,” said Penn Head Coach Corey Yeoman. “He likes to spend a lot of time there, and he plays that way. He likes to finish blocks and takes great pride in that.”

But strength isn't Cave’s only attribute.

"He has outstanding feet, he moves extremely well for being 295 pounds,” Yeoman said. “But also mentally, in the mental challenges and the strain and the drain of playing big time college football, I think he'll be fine in that way.”

Cave has a 3.1 GPA and is excited about taking his game to the next level. But his Penn teammates couldn't let him join the Irish without a little teasing first.

"They've definitely been ragging on me, especially with their record this year,” Cave said. “I've heard it from everybody. But everybody's just joking and they know that with the class we're bringing in, we're going to have a bright future."

Congratulations to Braxston Cave, this week’s Burger King Outstanding High School Student Athlete of the Week!