Notre Dame football and head coach Marcus Freeman have not backed away from 2027 Tampa Bay (Fla.) Jesuit five-star linebacker Kaden Henderson, even after he committed to the Texas A&M Aggies on June 18.

The Fighting Irish were considered the favorite for Henderson just a week before his commitment date, but head coach Mike Elko and the Aggies utilized a massive increase in their “NIL offer” along with some negative recruitment pointed at the folks from South Bend to land the elite defender. It was far from the cleanest recruitment.

As of now, however, Henderson continues to listen to linebacker coach Brian Jean-Mary, Freeman, and the rest of the Notre Dame staff. That is a very important detail as National Signing Day inches closer.

Texas A&M’s early struggles are shifting the momentum

After an upset loss to the Kentucky Wildcats recently, optimism started swirling about Notre Dame’s chances potentially increasing due to some struggles to begin the 2026 season for the Aggies. That only improved this past week when Texas A&M was dominated by the LSU Tigers by a score of 35-6.

With Notre Dame sitting at 4-0 and the No. 3 ranked team in the latest AP poll, the Fighting Irish have a lot of momentum and optimism on their side. As long as they maintain the level of play they are producing right now, they could have a very real chance when National Signing Day finally gets here in December.

Why Henderson is a perfect fit for Notre Dame

On paper, Henderson is a perfect fit for the Fighting Irish. He is a high academic kid coming from a very Notre Dame-ish school. He’s also an elite-level talent at the linebacker position, one that Notre Dame has recruited at an extremely high level during the Freeman tenure.

Henderson is currently rated on the 247Sports Composite ranking as a five-star player, the No. 24 overall player, the No. 1 linebacker, and the No. 4 player from the state of Florida for the 2027 recruiting class.

He now holds right around 50 total offers to his credit. Some of his top offers include the Fighting Irish, the Aggies, LSU, Miami, Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas, USC, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Clemson, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kansas, Louisville, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, South Carolina, Syracuse, UCF, Vanderbilt, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and SMU, among others.

Henderson’s dominant senior season

Henderson is off to a fast start as a senior. In five games, he is currently leading Jesuit with 40 total tackles, nine tackles for loss, five sacks, five quarterback hurries, two pass breakups, and a fumble recovery.

The 6-foot-1.5, 218-pound linebacker is a versatile weapon who can make plays on the second level while also blitzing off the edge. That kind of production against high-level competition only adds to his case as one of the best overall players in the country regardless of class.

Can Notre Dame make this flip happen?

There’s no telling if Notre Dame will be able to pull off this flip. As long as the Texas A&M Aggies continue to struggle and the Fighting Irish excel, it becomes a much easier pitch the closer we get to National Signing Day.

I’ve learned over the last couple of years to not bet against Freeman and his staff when it comes to the recruiting side of the program, and I do think they have a chance at Henderson when all is said and done. Unless the Aggies have a quick turnaround, their season is certainly not helping their case to hold on to one of the best overall players in the entire country, and Notre Dame will continue to push behind the scenes.