The Notre Dame 2026 defensive line board just got smaller as the Fighting Irish not named a finalist for high-upside pass rusher
The Notre Dame 2026 defensive line class has a chance to be an elite one, especially on the edges. Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish staff already holds commitments from five-star pass rusher Rodney Dunham at defensive end, as well as Ebenezer Ewetade. Their plan is to hopefully sign one more true defensive […]
The Notre Dame 2026 defensive line class has a chance to be an elite one, especially on the edges. Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish staff already holds commitments from five-star pass rusher Rodney Dunham at defensive end, as well as Ebenezer Ewetade. Their plan is to hopefully sign one more true defensive end and then solidify the interior.
With a few top targets left on the board, you can scratch off 2026 Rolesville (N.C.) High School defensive end Zavion Griffin-Haynes. The toolsy pass rusher announced his four finalists that he will also be taking official visits to this offseason. Those finalists include the Clemson Tigers (May 30-June 1), Michigan Wolverines (June 6-8), Nebraska Cornhuskers (June 13-15), and Florida State Seminoles (June 20-22).
Griffin-Haynes is considered a consensus four-star player according to every major recruiting platform. He ranks highest on the Rivals ranking, currently sitting as the No. 169 overall player, No. 17 EDGE, and No. 8 player in the state of North Carolina for the 2026 recruiting class. The talented pass rusher is ranked as the No. 256 overall player and No. 24 EDGE in the class on the 247Sports Composite ranking.
Outside of his finalists, Griffin-Haynes has put together a tremendous offer list. Some of the top schools that have offered include the Fighting Irish, Georgia, Alabama, Ohio State, Texas, LSU, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Penn State, Miami, Florida, Auburn, Missouri, South Carolina, Texas A&M, NC State, Kentucky, Michigan State, UNC, Maryland, Louisville, Arkansas, Virginia Tech, Mississippi State, UCLA, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Washington, West Virginia, Vanderbilt, Duke, Purdue, and Northwestern among others.
As a junior, Griffin-Haynes made a big impact for an extremely talented Rolesville team. The 6-6, 235-pound pass rusher managed to collect 48 total tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, and 10 sacks. He also recorded another 20 quarterback hurries while also breaking up a pass.
Griffin-Haynes showed some interest in Notre Dame, but not enough even though they liked him quite a bit as a player. The top EDGE targets on the board right now is Dre Quinn out of the state of Georgia, as well as Illinois standout McHale Blade. There’s a possibility the Irish would take both if it came down to it.
Notre Dame football attempting to dip back into a very familiar area that gave them an All-American in the very recent past
Notre Dame dipping back into the past
