Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman greets his players during a Notre Dame football spring practice at Irish Athletic Center on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, in South Bend. MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Notre Dame Looking For More Fireworks On The Recruiting Trail

Originally posted on Notre Dame Fighting Irish on SI
By John Kennedy | Last updated Jun 27, 2025 12:38 PM ET

Notre Dame riding wave of recruiting momentum

Notre Dame has built up major recruiting momentum lately, most notably through landing all-world athlete Joey O'Brien and Khary Adams to aid an already fantastic defensive backfield.

But Notre Dame isn't done yet.

The Irish now enter a critical phase of the 2026 recruiting cycle with only a handful of spots left and a handful of ideal top targets they'd like to fill those roles with. This stretch is of utmost importance because the spots left to fill are in positional areas of great need, such as receiver and defensive line.

What comes next? Hopefully some 4th of July fireworks

The upcoming holiday week could be a massive one for the Irish recruiting effort, as many top targets have commitment dates scheduled for this period, with Notre Dame feeling that it is in a very strong position to land these prospects.

The receiver position is one that Notre Dame knows it needs to bolster. There is a possibility that the Irish land top target Kaydon Finley on the 4th, Devin Fitzgerald on the 5th, and Brayden Robinson on the 6th.

Those around the program are very optimistic about Notre Dame's chances for a clean sweep here that would go a long way to soothing some anxious Irish souls in regards to the receiver position.

Beyond this position, if Notre Dame could land defensive lineman Elijah Golden out of Florida, whose head HS coach is former Irish player Jared Clark, this would be the best Irish class in some time.

It took some time for Notre Dame's new recruiting operation to get going after the departure of Chad Bowden to California, but it seems Mike Martin, Carter Auman, and company are hitting their stride at just the right time to cash in on a very talented class.

For more Irish news & notes, follow John on Twitter @alwaysirishINC, Always Irish on Youtube and on your preferred audio podcast provider.

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

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