Here’s feel-good story of Plymouth grad’s journey to Notre Dame hoops team
Matt MacLellan flushes a dunk during a game for Madonna University. PHOTO COURTESY OF MADONNA ATHLETICS
In the summer of 2010, 8-year-old Matt MacLellan visited the University of Notre Dame’s campus, totally unaware that 15 years later he’d be a member of the Fighting Irish’s basketball team.
MacLellan’s journey from Plymouth High School and Madonna University to Notre Dame is equal parts magical, surreal and proof that hard work pays off.
Just days before he was prepared to sign with an agent (which would have ended his NCAA eligibility) as he pursued a professional hoops career overseas, MacLellan received a life-changing text from Noel Emenhiser, the head coach for Madonna’s basketball team, for which MacLellan played the previous five seasons (players received an extra year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted the 2020-21 season).
An uplifting friend-of-a-friend connection
“Another coach in our league who is a friend of mine reached out to me earlier this spring about Matt,” Emenhiser explained. “This coach was friends with Notre Dame’s coach, who told him their program was looking to fill the Fighting Irish’s last roster spot for the 2025-26 season.
“When Notre Dame’s coach told my coaching friend he was looking for a skilled, high-character, hard-working graduate player who would embrace any role the program may have for him, he immediately recommended Matt.
“Once Notre Dame’s coach showed interest, I let Matt know Notre Dame may be reaching out to him.”
Finishing his collegiate basketball career at Notre Dame was kind of a dream-come-true scenario for MacLellan, who is Catholic and holds Irish citizenship.
“I grew up in a (University of) Michigan household, but I’ve always had the greatest respect for Notre Dame and everything it stands for,” said MacLellan, who graduated from Plymouth in 2020.
“A few days after I received the text from Coach Emenhiser, I got a call from Notre Dame’s associate coach, who explained what my role would be.
“They sent me a personality test that I filled out, and after I made an official visit to the campus, they offered me a one-year roster spot. I was ecstatic. I’m still planning on pursuing a basketball career overseas, but that can wait a year.”
Family’s Irish eyes are smiling
MacLellan, a Canton resident who attended Canton’s All Saints Catholic School from kindergarten through eighth grade, said his parents’ (Joe and Michelle) excitement level matched his.
“My parents are huge basketball fans and they’ve been incredibly supportive of my basketball career since I was a kid,” MacLellan said. “They couldn’t be happier for me.
“My mom’s grandparents were actually born in Ireland, so she has Irish citizenship, as do I.”
‘Great experience so far’
Upon moving to South Bend a few weeks ago, MacLennan enrolled in a one-year master’s degree program (he earned a double major in business administration and accounting at Madonna) and started working out with the Fighting Irish’s basketball team.
“It’s been a great experience so far,” said MacLellan. “The coaches told me to treat practices like games. They didn’t promise me a specific role yet … it all depends on how hard I work and what I can show them during practices.”
Following a stellar career at Plymouth, MacLellan served in a reserve role his first two seasons at Madonna, including the 2020-21 campaign that was halted then restarted multiple times due to the pandemic.
“I was playing behind a really good player in Mark Mettie, so I was totally fine coming off the bench my first two seasons at Madonna,” MacLellan said. “Plus, to be perfectly honest, I wasn’t quite ready to be playing big minutes early on at Madonna.
“When everything was shut down early in the pandemic, it was actually a silver lining for me because I was able to work on my individual skills in my basement — we were sent a series of drills to work on when we were isolated — that really helped me. Plus, I put on some weight during that time because I was eating more.”
Well-deserved experience for MacLellan
Emenhiser said that once MacLellan received an increased role for the Crusaders during his third season at Madonna, his work ethic — at both ends of the basketball court — allowed him to flourish.
“This couldn’t have happened to a nicer, more-deserving young man,” Emenhiser said. “He has skills, too. He can hit the three (the 6-foot-9 MacLellan shot a highly-respectable 32% from beyond the arc his final year at Madonna) and he’s quick for a big guy, so he’s great at attacking the basket, too.
“He takes great pride in his defense as well.”
The Fighting Irish’s 2025-26 ACC schedule includes games against college hoops blue-blood programs Duke, North Carolina and Syracuse, all of which will be nationally televised.
“Whatever my role turns out to be, I’ll be happy,” MacLellan said. “I mean, a few weeks ago, playing for a great program like Notre Dame wasn’t even on my life’s radar.”
Ed Wright can be reached at 734-664-4657 or edwright@socialhousenews.com.
