Recruiting: Notre Dame Lands Coveted 2026 Offensive Lineman

The Fighting Irish were a bit late to the party in terms of offering Thom a scholarship, but offensive line coach Joe Rudolph and the staff were very aware of his talent, and after the spring evaluation period, they offered him back on June 17. Just over a month later, he is a part of a stellar 2026 Notre Dame class that is improving by the day.

You don't need to be Sherlock Holmes to see that clearly this was an offer Thom was waiting for, and Notre Dame was the dream destination for the Connecticut product.

Thom and Notre Dame had been in contact prior to his offer, but it was understood that Notre Dame wanted to see how he developed physically, as he made the transition from tight end to offensive tackle.

Thom grew up a fan of the Fighting Irish, making this a no-brainer once Notre Dame truly entered the picture. Not to mention, his mother is a graduate from Notre Dame and surely will love to see her son attending her alma mater, donning the gold helmet.

Notre Dame loves to recruit former tight ends who make the move into tackle as their body grows (Joe Alt, Will Black), and they are looking to strike gold again here with Thom. Playing tight end and running routes, while also blocking, creates a great foundation for athleticism and footwork at tackle.

Truth be told, it appeared for a while that Notre Dame and Penn State each would land one of the duo of Grayson McKeogh and Charlie Thom. As it turns out, the Fighting Irish went and got both, making Thom's pledge on June 24 Notre Dame's fourth recruiting win (Grayson McKeogh, Khary Adams, Joey O'Brien, Charlie Thom) over the Nittany Lions in a week.

Marcus Freeman is shoving James Franklin into a locker on and off the field, and it appears he has no intentions of stopping anytime soon.