A Notre Dame visit could be foreshadowing a future recruiting strategy to help prepare the Irish offense for life after CJ Carr
There could be another quarterback target to know as Notre Dame solidifies life after CJ Carr.
Notre Dame football received an intriguing second chance in the 2027 recruiting class when star quarterback Teddy Jarrard opted to reclassify into the 2026 class. With CJ Carr heading into his second season as the starting quarterback for the Fighting Irish, there is already some 2027 NFL Draft buzz building. While you are hopeful that Carr will be your signal caller for the next two seasons, head coach Marcus Freeman and the staff need to be smart about preparing for the worst.
You have Jarrard, Blake Hebert, and Noah Grubbs already in the room, but adding another talented quarterback would only increase your chances of having a proper heir apparent to Carr. In the 2027 class, we saw the team extend an offer to Vero Beach (Fla.) High School star Wonderful Monds IV recently. There appears to be another talented quarterback to keep a close eye on.
Notre Dame quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli has been busy on the road to see some talented recruits recently. That included stopping in to check in on 2027 Salt Lake City (Utah) West quarterback Kamden Lopati, who is currently committed to Illinois. While Lopati is committed to the Illini, several big-time programs have been pursuing the talented signal caller. Don’t be surprised if the Irish join the fold and offer him at some point.
From a pure talent perspective, Lopati would have a strong argument as the most gifted quarterback on the roster. There is absolutely interest in the Utah native right now. It shouldn’t surprise anyone if Notre Dame decides to make a strong push, especially after seeing him again in person.
Kamden Lopati’s recruiting background
The recruiting rankings are a bit all over the place for Lopati right now – some outlets rank him as a four-star and others as a three-star player. On the 247 Sports Composite ranking, Lopati sits as a four-star, the No. 149 overall player, the No. 12 quarterback, and the No. 3 player from the state of Utah for the 2027 recruiting class. If the interest over the last few weeks is any indication, those rankings should continue to trend upward.
While his rankings are all over the place, the Utah native boasts an impressive offer list so far. Some of his top offers include Oregon, Tennessee, Arizona State, Utah, Washington, Arizona, Colorado, Boston College, Houston, Illinois, Arkansas, Cal, Duke, Stanford, and Purdue, among others. More and more schools are continuing to show a lot of interest in the talented passer.
As a junior in 2025, Lopati put together a tremendous season. The 6-3, 215-pound passer managed to throw for 2,671 yards and 34 touchdowns, completing over 64 percent of his passes and throwing just eight interceptions. Lopati also ran for another 730 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground, averaging a stellar 8.1 yards per carry. That part of his game has been extremely underrated.
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