There’s a wide receiver target that Notre Dame football and HC Marcus Freeman are starting to prioritize in a big way
Notre Dame has an intriguing wide receiver recruiting target that Fighting Irish fans need to know.
Notre Dame football put together a tremendous wide receiver group in the 2026 recruiting class with Kaydon Finley, Brayden Robinson, Bubba Frazier, Dylan Faison, and Devin Fitzgerald. After some early questions on the recruiting trail, wide receivers coach Mike Brown answered a lot of those concerns in this past class, and the hope is that that impact continues with the 2027 group.
One of the top wide receiver targets to know in the 2027 class is Malvern (Pa.) Prep athlete Cade Cooper. The Pennsylvania native is set to visit Notre Dame for an official visit on June 12-14, which could end up being a very important visit later this offseason. Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish have identified Cooper as a player that they want.
As of today, I really like where Notre Dame is with Cooper. He is a player who has more and more programs beginning to have interest in, which will make this a difficult recruitment the longer it goes on. If the Irish staff wants him, they have a chance to try to close this one this summer, and I believe that they have the inside track right now.
While there are some bigger names on the board right now, Notre Dame is extremely high on the overall talent that Cooper brings to the table. He might not be as developed as some right now, but you can argue that his upside is about as high as anyone’s.
Cade Cooper’s recruiting background
Depending on which of the major recruiting platforms you look at, Cooper is rated between a three-star and four-star player, but mostly for the former. On the 247 Sports Composite ranking, the Pennsylvania native is currently pegged as a four-star, the No. 339 overall player, the No. 43 wide receiver, and the No. 12 player from the state of Pennsylvania for the 2027 recruiting class.
Despite those underwhelming rankings, Cooper’s offer list has continued to expand quickly over the last couple of months. Some of his top offers now include the Fighting Irish, Penn State, Ole Miss, Kentucky, Pitt, Boston College, Illinois, Cincinnati, Virginia, Maryland, Michigan State, Minnesota, Virginia Tech, Northwestern, Duke, Wake Forest, West Virginia, and Syracuse, among several others.
As a junior, Cooper turned in a good season for Malvern Prep. The 6-3, 192-pound pass catcher managed to haul in 44 receptions for 644 yards and six touchdowns, an average of 14.6 yards per reception. Cooper’s combination of size, twitch, and physicality brings an intriguing skill set for the next level.
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