Top Notre Dame, Penn State Recruiting Target Reveals Commitment Date.
Notre Dame football will know its fate with one of its biggest remaining targets in the 2026 recruiting class soon. That’s because prized safety Joey O’Brien has set his commitment date for June 20. O’Brien announced the news of his pending commitment on Wednesday.
O’Brien has Notre Dame as a finalist, along with Penn State, Clemson, and Oregon.O’Brien visited both Clemson and Penn State last month and is set to visit Oregon and Notre Dame in the coming days, with his trip to Notre Dame coming just a week before his announcement.
Joey O’Brien, the Recruiting Prospect
O’Brien is listed as a five-star prospect by 247Sports, ranking as the 30th overall player in the class according to their rankings. The 6-4, 180-pound safety from Glendale (Pa.) La Salle has size that can’t be taught an elite ability to cover.
247Sports’ Andrew Ivins described O’Brien with the following note: Overall, should be viewed as one of the more unique prospects in the 2026 cycle, given the fact that he could fit into a variety of different roles for a College Football Playoff contender.Nick Shepkowski’s Quick Takeaway:
Oftentimes, at this point in the cycle, we usually know where most prospects are leaning. This one seems different. Although Oregon might feel like a reach right now, O’Brien ending up at either of his other three finalists appears like a real possibility.
O’Brien would be a huge get for Notre Dame, as he would be for any of the four schools. The best hope for Notre Dame is that it takes full advantage of having his last visit on June 13 and knocks that out of the park.
I don’t feel great that O’Brien ultimately ends up at Notre Dame, but it doesn’t appear that Penn State or Clemson are exactly runaway favorites, either. Can Marcus Freeman and company win this recruitment in the last laps of its process? If so, it’ll do a lot to change the narrative that still remains around Notre Dame football
