While we are still waiting for new defensive line coach Charlie Partridge to land his first 2027 recruiting target, Notre Dame fans should be very excited for the room that he has the ability to put together in the future. Along with head coach Marcus Freeman, the Fighting Irish have put themselves in a tremendous position to land several top 2027 targets.

In a recruiting update from Steve Wiltfong from Rivals, he talked about several defensive linemen that the Irish lead for right now. The three targets mentioned were Exton (Pa.) Downingtown East pass rusher Abraham Sesay, Chicago (Ill.) St. Patrick defensive tackle David Folorunsho, and Chicago (Ill.) Brother Rice behemoth Brayden Parks. There is still closing that needs to happen, but there is some high confidence right now.

Here is what you need to know about Sesay, Folorunsho, and Parks right now. It is an extremely impressive trio.

Abraham Sesay’s recruiting background

Sesay is a four-star player and near-consensus top-100 recruit on each of the major recruiting platforms. On the 247 Sports Composite ranking, Sesay currently sits as the No. 63 overall player, the No. 8 EDGE, and the No. 3 player from the state of Pennsylvania for the 2027 recruiting class. 247 Sports is the highest on the Pennsylvania native right now, pegging him as the No. 27 overall player and No. 6 EDGE in the class.

The 6-5, 225-pound pass rusher has demanded the attention of some of the top programs in all of college football. Some of Sesay’s top offers include the Fighting Irish, Ohio State, Oregon, Alabama, Florida, Penn State, Ole Miss, Auburn, USC, Nebraska, Kentucky, South Carolina, Georgia Tech, Maryland, NC State, UNC, Boston College, Rutgers, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin, Duke, and Northwestern, among others.

As a junior, Sesay put together a tremendous season for Downingtown East. The talented pass rusher recorded around 80 total tackles and 13 sacks. With long limbs and explosiveness, Sesay has the talent to develop into a big-time defensive end on the college level. As he continues to grow into his frame, there is no reason why he can’t become a stellar three-down player.

David Folorunsho’s recruiting background 

From a recruiting rankings perspective, Folorunsho has one of the more bizarre profiles that you will find. He is considered to be a three-star recruit by the majority of the major recruiting platforms. The outlier is Rivals, which is extremely high on the Chicago native right now. On their ranking, Folorunsho ranks currently as a four-star, the No. 13 overall player, No. 2 defensive lineman, and No. 1 player from the state of Illinois. It wouldn’t be surprising to see some of the other platforms follow their lead.

Despite those modest rankings on some sites, a long list of impressive programs has been pushing hard for Folorunsho. Some of his top offers include the Fighting Irish, Texas, LSU, Florida, Penn State, Tennessee, Miami, Indiana, Nebraska, Missouri, Louisville, Vanderbilt, Washington, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Kansas State, Iowa, UNC, Kentucky, Michigan State, Cincinnati, and Purdue, among others. 

At 6-4 and 285 pounds, Folorunsho is an impressive athlete who has been used up and down the line of scrimmage from various alignments for St. Patrick. As a junior, the talented defender recorded 55 total tackles, 18 tackles for loss, and five sacks. As Folorunsho continues to fill out his frame and develop, he has the potential to become an even more dominant football player and a major riser in the 2027 recruiting class on each platform.

Folorunsho has some deep ties to the Notre Dame program, with his head coach being former Irish safety Tom Zbikowski. He is also trained by former Notre Dame linebacker Kerry Neal. Those relationships are definitely having a strong impact on Folorunsho.

Brayden Parks’ recruiting background 

Parks is considered to be a four-star player by each of the major recruiting platforms. On the 247 Sports Composite ranking, Parks currently sits as the No. 179 overall player and No. 20 defensive lineman in the 2027 recruiting class. He is also pegged as the No. 8 player in the state of Illinois, a very important area for the Irish. Parks has long been a player the Irish have valued tremendously.

The offer list for Parks is even more impressive than his recruiting rankings. Some of the top programs that have offered Parks includes the Fighting Irish, Alabama, Ohio State, Texas, Oregon, Michigan, LSU, Ole Miss, Penn State, USC, Miami, Auburn, Nebraska, Michigan State, Indiana, Kansas State, Iowa, Illinois, Washington, Arkansas, Arizona State, Iowa State, Minnesota, UNC, Purdue, Rutgers, Syracuse, Vanderbilt, Wisconsin, and Kansas, among others. 

The 6-3, 305-pound defensive tackle was a tremendous player for Brother Rice as a junior in 2025. In 13 games that he played in, Parks managed to record 44 total tackles, six tackles for loss, and two sacks. His impact is a lot greater than the box score might suggest, possessing an impressive blend of size, power, and movement skills. It is hard to miss big No. 98 on the field for Brother Rice.