Notre Dame's chances at a top-50 recruiting target will become a lot more obvious after an upcoming pivotal OV weekend
NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...
Notre Dame will be keeping a close eye on the Alabama official visitor weekend. There is a top 2027 target set to make the trip to Tuscaloosa.
Notre Dame football has been riding a ton of recruiting momentum over the last several weeks. Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish will hope to again add a few more top 2027 targets to their class when they begin hosting players for official visits on June 12. For now, they are forced to sit back, be patient, and let things play out.
Several top college football programs will begin to host top 2027 targets for official visits this weekend. That includes the Alabama Crimson Tide, who have an impressive set of players that will make the trip to Tuscaloosa on Friday. For Notre Dame fans, the main visitor worth keeping a close eye on is 2027 Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy wide receiver Osani Gayles.
With Notre Dame holding a commitment from Littleton (Co.) Valor Christian wide receiver Jackson Coleman, the Irish staff is shooting for several top targets. While there are other top programs, including Alabama, pursuing Gayles, Notre Dame has held strong in that top group. The Crimson Tide is the program’s top contender right now, so this weekend could make-or-break their chances with Gayles.
If the Irish staff can close on Gayles, that would be a part of a tremendous finish, considering that they remain in a great spot with Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas star Julius Jones Jr. There have been some wide receiver recruiting questions in this process so far, but there appears to be an ideal finish to answer accordingly.
Osani Gayles’ recruiting background
Gayles is considered to be a four-star and top-115 overall player by each of the major recruiting platforms. On the 247 Sports Composite ranking, Gayles is ranked as the No. 48 overall player, the No. 8 wide receiver, and the No. 6 player out of the state of Florida for the 2027 recruiting class. 247 Sports and ESPN both have Gayles rated as the No. 35 overall player in the class.
As if his recruiting wasn’t impressive enough, the offer list for Gayles might be even better. Some of his top offers include the Fighting Irish, Georgia, Alabama, Ohio State, Oregon, LSU, Florida, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Miami, USC, Florida State, Auburn, Missouri, Washington, Arizona State, Colorado, Arizona, Minnesota, UCLA, Oregon State, Washington State, Cal, and Stanford, among others.
When Gayles was a sophomore at St. Mary’s in 2024, he put together an outstanding season. During that year, he hauled in 43 receptions for 756 yards and six touchdowns, while carrying the football 22 times for 218 yards and three scores on the ground. With IMG Academy this past year, Gayles managed 20 receptions for 492 yards and five touchdowns in nine games, an average of 24.6 yards per reception.
More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos