Notre Dame football is set to kick off its official visits this weekend. Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish will host a long list of top 2027 recruiting targets, with the hopes of solidifying another elite group. The next two weekends will be vitally important in doing so. 

Before the official visit season madness begins, here are my predictions for where each of the top Notre Dame targets ends up. There will be a lot of huge victories for the Irish staff, but I don’t think it’ll be quite as dominant as last offseason. 

Here’s how I see it playing out. 

WR Julius Jones Jr. – Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas 

Jones has been a priority player for Notre Dame for quite some time. With his official visit kicking off on Thursday, there’s a strong chance that the staff closes the deal this weekend. Notre Dame needs this combination of playmaking ability and speed, especially when it’s coming from a legacy recruit. 

Prediction: Notre Dame 

WR Osani Gayles – Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy 

Gayles has been an interesting recruitment to follow. While I would have never called Notre Dame the leader, they have continued to stay firmly in the game. They’ll have a final pitch before Gayles makes his commitment on June 27, but I don’t think that Notre Dame wins out on this one. 

Prediction: Alabama 

WR Myles McAfee – Severn (Md.) Archbishop Spalding 

Notre Dame is battling against Virginia Tech and Maryland for McAfee. While the Irish staff is a bit late to the party, they have quickly been able to make up ground. If my feeling on the Gayles recruitment is correct, I wouldn’t be shocked if the Irish push for McAfee to pair with Jackson Coleman and Jones, assuming they land him this month. 

Prediction: Notre Dame 

IOL Albert Simien – Lake Charles (La.) Sam Houston 

Despite being a Louisiana native, I still believe that this is a Notre Dame-Texas A&M battle. You could tell me that this one goes either way, and I wouldn’t be shocked. For now, I’ll go with the Aggies, but I don’t feel great about it. 

Prediction: Texas A&M 

EDGE Abraham Sesay – Exton (Pa.) Downingtown East 

Notre Dame is the team to beat for Sesay, and I think it’s by a good margin. LSU and Florida State are fighting hard to pull an upset, but I’d be surprised if Sesay isn’t Irish when it’s all said and done. They have a chance to close on the five-star pass rusher this weekend. 

Prediction: Notre Dame 

EDGE/DT Marcus Fakatou – Chatsworth (Calif.) Sierra Canyon 

Notre Dame was the leader early for Fakatou, faded, and then pulled back to the top group. They will have an official visit to try to get back into the leading position. I think Ohio State wins out in the end, but I hope I’m wrong. 

Prediction: Ohio State 

DT Brayden Parks – Chicago (Ill.) Brother Rice 

This recruitment has been going back and forth between Notre Dame and Oregon over the last several months. On the surface, this feels like a no-brainer for the Irish, but we will see if they can close the deal. I’d put this recruitment as a 50/50 coin flip right now. 

Prediction: Notre Dame 

DT Tyler Alexander – Wellington (Fla.) Palm Beach Central 

Notre Dame is battling Georgia, Colorado, and Texas for Alexander. I’ve heard some optimism for Colorado to land the 6-3.5, 315-pound behemoth, but I actually think the Bulldogs win out after his official visit this past weekend. We will see if the Irish can make a move in a couple of days. 

Prediction: Georgia 

DT Segun Alexander – Rabun Gap (Ga.) Nacoochee School 

When Alexander chose to reclassify to the 2027 recruiting class, Notre Dame quickly turned up the heat on the talented defender. At 6-3 and 275 pounds, Alexander is an extremely interesting defensive lineman. Texas A&M has been the assumed leader for a while now, and I have no reason to believe that he lands elsewhere right now. 

Prediction: Texas A&M

LB Kaden Henderson – Tampa Bay (Fla.) Jesuit 

This is a Notre Dame-Texas A&M battle right now. With the Irish having the final official visit, that’s potentially great timing to upend the Aggies. There is just something about this recruitment that doesn’t have me overly optimistic right now. 

Prediction: Texas A&M 

LB Roman Igwebuike – Chicago (Ill.) Mount Carmel 

Clemson and Indiana are a couple of other top programs to know for Igwebuike, but it does feel pretty open still. The official visits will be very important to see who wins out. If my Henderson skepticism does hold, I imagine the Notre Dame staff will turn up the heat even more to land the Chicagoland star. 

Prediction: Notre Dame

CB Karnell “Greedy” James – Manvel (Texas) High School 

Notre Dame is in a good position with James, and they very well could win out in the end. The Texas commit is, however, coming off a great official visit to LSU, and he’s originally from Louisiana. I do think that James ends up flipping from the Longhorns, but I’ll give the slight nod to the Tigers right now. 

Prediction: LSU 

S Andre Hyppolite – Miami (Fla.) North Miami Beach 

Hyppolite was a later addition to the official visitor list for Notre Dame, and he will be heading to South Bend on June 15-17. This is a harder recruitment to read, and it certainly could change depending on how that visit goes. For now, I’m rolling with the Miami kid staying to play for the Hurricanes. 

Prediction: Miami