Predicting the entire Notre Dame 2026 defensive class following biggest recruiting weekend of the year for the Fighting Irish

Defensive recruiting has mostly been tremendous since head coach Marcus Freeman took over the Notre Dame program. That has continued in the 2026 recruiting class, and the Fighting Irish have a chance to solidify an elite group down the stretch. There are some priority recruits left on the board they will be focused to close on. 

With Notre Dame having just finished up their biggest recruiting weekend of the year, there isn’t a better time to make an update prediction for what the class will look like in the end. Here is my prediction for the 2026 defensive class. There is a lot of work left to be done, but it has the chance to be a special group. 

DEFENSIVE LINE 

Notre Dame is putting together a tremendous defensive line class in 2026. They already hold commitments from five-star Rodney Dunham and fellow North Carolina pass rusher Ebenezer Ewetade. Add in Texas run stopper Tiki Hola, and this has the chance to be an elite group. 

The Dre Quinn drama is nearly over, and the Fighting Irish recently missed on Texas defensive tackle Alister Vallejo. I don’t see them gaining a commitment from Noah Clark either, so there really only leaves one major target left on the board, Elijah Golden. It’s not going to be easy but I’ll predict the Irish to beat out Alabama for the talented defensive lineman. 

EDGE Rodney Dunham - Charlotte (N.C.) Myers Park 

EDGE Ebenezer Ewetade - Garner (N.C.) South 

DT Tiki Hola - Bastrop (Texas) High School 

DT Elijah Golden - Sarasota (Fla.) Cardinal Mooney 

LINEBACKERS 

Linebacker is going to be the boring position to talk about for Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish are still pursuing Texas standout Tank King, but I don’t predict them to land him right now. This group is all dependent on keeping Thomas Davis Jr. in the class. I expect it to be a smaller group, and they would be fine with just carrying two players in the end along with Jakobe Clapper. 

LB Thomas Davis Jr. - Matthews (N.C.) Weddington 

LB Jakobe Clapper - Cincinnati (Ohio) St. Xavier 

SECONDARY 

With five-star athlete Joey O’Brien and cornerback Khary Adams being the two top targets on the board, I’m predicting that Notre Dame closes on both. If the Fighting Irish do gain a commitment from O’Brien on the 20th, the battle won’t end. They will have to be ready to hang on to him until national signing day in December. 

I also like the Notre Dame chances for safety Nick Reddish right now following the official visit. If they do finish with this five-man class, this will be the best secondary haul that the program has landed in a very long time. 

CB Chaston Smith - Chattanooga (Tenn.) Knoxville Catholic 

CB Khary Adams - Towson (Md.) Loyola Blakefield 

CB Ayden Pouncey - Winter Garden (Fla.) High School 

S Joey O’Brien - Glenside (Pa.) La Salle College 

S Nick Reddish - Charlotte (N.C.) Independence