Notre Dame Fighting Irish lead the country with most blue-chip commits

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Notre Dame’s scorching-hot run on the recruiting trail in recent months continued Tuesday night, as the Fighting Irish landed four-star edge rusher Jackson Vaughn out of New Jersey powerhouse Bergen Catholic.

Vaughn, who reclassified up from the Class of 2028 earlier this spring, chose ND over Penn State, Rutgers, Miami and a host of others. In the process, he became the 10th commitment since April 1 for Marcus Freeman and Co., who have been snapping up new additions left and right.

“What really separated Notre Dame for me was the combination of elite academics, player development, culture, and the relationships I built with the coaching staff,” Vaughn told Rivals’ Steve Wiltfong. “I felt alignment with their vision for me on and off the field. The brotherhood, the standard they operate with, and the overall environment just felt right for me and my family.”

The Fighting Irish now have the nation’s No. 7 class in the Rivals Industry Team Recruiting Rankings, trailing just behind Ohio State and rival USC for a top-5 spot. They do, however, lead the country in another category: blue-chip commitments.

Adding Vaughn gave Notre Dame its 14th blue-chip pledge of the cycle, breaking a three-way tie with Texas A&M and Oklahoma for the most of any school in the country.

Of the program’s 18 commits thus far, 78% are either 4- or 5-star prospects in the Rivals Industry Ranking. Last cycle, the Fighting Irish signed 21 blue-chippers, the most for the program in the modern recruiting era. That followed up a 2025 class that featured 14 more, signaling just how much Freeman and his staff have upgraded the talent coming into the program.

Fighting Irish loading up on pass rushers again

Aside from stockpiling talent overall, one of the biggest focuses over the past two cycles for Freeman and Co. has been signing coveted pass-rushers. In 2026, that was five-star Rodney Dunham, Rivals top-40 recruit Ebenezer Ewetade.

Vaughn joins fellow four-star Aidan O’Neil, who committed back on May 1, in this year’s class. And the Fighting Irish aren’t done.

Five-star EDGE Abraham Sesay is also considered a heavy lean to ND right now, as they battle Penn State, LSU, Duke and Florida State. Heading into official visits beginning this weekend, Notre Dame holds the lead in the Rivals Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM).

Sesay, a multi-sport athlete at the high school level, totaled 13 sacks as a junior and is ranked by Rivals as the No. 16 overall prospect and No. 2 edge rusher in the class.

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