Nov 30, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans running back Quinten Joyner (0) runs the ball ahead of Notre Dame Fighting Irish safety Xavier Watts (0) during the second half at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Nation’s No. 1 Tight End Announces College Commitment

Originally posted on Notre Dame Fighting Irish on SI
By Nick Shepkowski | Last updated May 30, 2025 3:39 PM ET

The nation's top-ranked tight end recruit in the 2026 recruiting class announced his college decision on Friday as Mark Bowman of Mater Dei in California will stay close to home and attend USC. Bowman is rated as a five-star prospect by 247Sports and chose USC over the likes of Oregon, Georgia, Texas, and Ole Miss.

The commitment is USC's 27th in the recruiting cycle as the Trojans class is widely viewed across college football as currently the best in the sport as its lead on second-rated Notre Dame grows a little more with this commitment.

BREAKING: Five-Star TE Mark Bowman has Committed to USC, he tells me for @on3recruits

The No. 1 TE in the ‘26 Class chose the Trojans over Georgia, Texas, & Ole Miss

“Ephesians 5:20
No place like home, Fight On!✌️”https://t.co/AMo8BpqnxE pic.twitter.com/TGQLolz5uD
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) May 30, 2025

I'll be honest - writing this piece about USC landing a major piece but thinking the entire time I do so that this player will never play in a Notre Dame vs. USC game is weird.

More importantly for Notre Dame is what remains to be done in the 2026 cycle. Bowman was never really offered by Notre Dame as he didn't appear to have much, if any interest, but the Fighting Irish do still lack a tight end in the class.

Names to keep an eye on at the position seem to be Ian Premer (Kansas), Brayden Fogle (Ohio), and Evan Jacobson (Iowa), but others could certainly emerge if the struggles to land a tight end remain.

Notre Dame currently has 16 commitments in the class but one of the top linebackers in it, Thomas Davis, Jr. of North Carolina, is spending this weekend making an official visit to Georgia.

This article first appeared on Notre Dame Fighting Irish on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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