What better way to parlay a run to the College Football Playoff National Championship game than to turn up aces on the off-season recruiting trail? There isn’t one, and for Marcus Freeman and company, as they’ve certainly struck gold this spring and summer.
Most recently, the Irish completed a three-day sweep of commitments — procuring verbals from a trio of talented wide receivers: Kaydon Finely, Devin Fitzgerald, and Brayden Robinson. Whilst impressive, this Independence-weekend signing surge isn’t the most eye opening stat regarding Notre Dame’s recruiting prowess.
Rather, what’s most notable about the Class of 2026 is that Coach Free has staked claim to the South — in particular the Lone Star State. With Sunday’s acquisition of Robinson, the Fighting Irish have secured four student-athletes — running back Javion Osborne, defensive lineman Tiki Hola, as well as the aforementioned wideouts Kaydon Finley and Brayden Robinson — from the state of Texas.
With this quartet of Texans, Freeman has now produced two recruiting classes featuring four players residing from the Lone Star State — In total, Coach Free has received 10 commitments from said state over his four year tenure in South Bend.
To put this into proper context, prior to Coach Free’s Class of 2023 — his first recruiting class featuring four Texans — you had to go all the way back to Bob Davies’ Class of 2000 to find at least four student-athletes reigning from the Lone Star State. That 2000 Class featured a handful of players — standouts Vontez Duff, Derek Curry, and Carlyle Holiday, as well as solid contributors Omar Jenkins, and Garron Bible.
As with Bob Davie’s time at the helm, there’s no mistaking the importance of Freeman successfully pumping Texas’ fertile recruiting lands for top-tier talent — as indicative of the exceptional performances that Leonard Moore (Class of 2024) and Jaden Greathouse (Class of 2023) produced throughout last season. Couple these current Irish stars, with the talented prospects yet to blossom — like Kendren Young, Micah Bell, Braylon James, and Kaleb Smith — and the incoming 2026 ‘fearsome foursome’, and it’s clear that Freeman has built an enriched recruiting pipeline just north of the Rio Grande.