Predicting the final Notre Dame 2026 defensive class following the Fighting Irish wrapping up official visits

Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Notre Dame program are amidst the craziest recruiting madness we have seen in a long time. The official visit season is over, which means the 2026 recruiting class is beginning to start and fill up. We are now very much in the decision making part of the process, and the next few weeks are going to be insanely busy.

Here is my prediction for what the defensive class will look like in the end. There are only a few key targets left on the board, but they are important ones. This has a chance to be an elite group if the Fighting Irish close strong. 

DEFENSIVE LINE

Defensive line coach Al Washington is putting together his best defensive line class so far since he arrived in South Bend. With five-star pass rusher Rodney Dunham and high-upside defensive end Ebenezer Ewetade already committed, this EDGE group is already fantastic. They had interest in potentially adding one more, but I don't expect that to happen barring someone new being added to the board.

Notre Dame also has a commitment from Texas defensive tackle Tiki Hola, who is an outstanding run defender. The missing piece inside has been a penetration style three technique, and Elijah Golden is the top priority to know. The Fighting Irish are battling it out with Alabama for Golden, and I think they end up beating out the Crimson Tide following his official visit to South Bend this past weekend. 

Here is my prediction for the defensive line class in the end. 

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

Compared to what Notre Dame has been doing with linebacker recruiting over the last few years, the 2026 class is going to be viewed as a slightly underwhelming one by some. There is a chance they push to three in the class depending on how things shake out, but I think it ends with the two in the class right now. The Fighting Irish were able to get Thomas Davis Jr. to shut down his recruitment despite a push from Georgia, which was massive. 

Here is my prediction for the secondary class in the end. 

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

LB Jakobe Clapper - Cincinnati (Ohio) St. Xavier 

SECONDARY

This has a strong argument as the best secondary class Notre Dame has put together in a very long time, and I would agree with that opinion. With Joey O’Brien and Khary Adams recently committing to the Fighting Irish, that gives the team two borderline five-star players for the 2026 recruiting class. If the class ended today, it would be an elite one, but they still have safety Nick Reddish as a key target on the board. 

Here is my prediction for the secondary class in the end. 

CB Khary Adams - Towson (Md.) Loyola Blakefield 

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

CB Chaston Smith - Knoxville (Tenn.) Catholic

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

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