Notre Dame football “the team to beat” for massive 2026 offensive tackle recruit from SEC country
There is no position with a prouder tradition at Notre Dame since the turn of the century than on the offensive line. With the likes of Quenton Nelson, Zack Martin, Ronnie Stanley, Joe Alt, and Mike McGlinchey going from standouts in the blue and gold to NFL stars recently, the success speaks for itself. In […]
There is no position with a prouder tradition at Notre Dame since the turn of the century than on the offensive line. With the likes of Quenton Nelson, Zack Martin, Ronnie Stanley, Joe Alt, and Mike McGlinchey going from standouts in the blue and gold to NFL stars recently, the success speaks for itself.
In the 2026 recruiting class, Notre Dame has been busy adding some more outstanding talent. That includes Tyler Merrill, Ben Nichols, and Sullivan Garvin. There is still one more spot to fill, and some interesting options that remain.
Arguably the most intriguing is Bauxite (Ark.) High School offensive tackle Evan Goodwin, who was offered by the staff after attending Junior Day. Things have been moving fast between the Irish staff and Goodwin, who has set an official visit back to South Bend on June 12-14.
They are among a group of four schools to get official visits from the Arkansas native. Goodwin will also be heading to Wisconsin (May 29-31), Missouri (June 6-8), and Mississippi State (June 20-22).
According to a source in the know, things are in a great place for the Irish. They are viewed as the “team to beat” if they decide to push.
Notre Dame is also in a good spot with Michigan standout Gregory Patrick, and are continuing to push for North Carolina standout Ekene Ogboko as well. It’s uncertain who the Irish will focus on to fill that last spot.
Goodwin has seen a steady climb from a recruiting rankings perspective this offseason. He currently sits as the No. 199 overall player and the No. 16 offensive tackle in the 2026 recruiting class according to 247Sports. Each major platform has him rated as a four-star player.
It shouldn’t be much of a surprise that Goodwin is extremely well-regarded as a player. He has accumulated quite the offer list. The 6-7, 325-pound behemoth has been offered by the Fighting Irish, Ohio State, Oklahoma, LSU, USC, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Florida State, South Carolina, Arkansas, Wisconsin, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma State, TCU, Missouri, Minnesota, Mississippi State, and Houston among others.
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