These are the plays from today's Blue-Gold Game that I think could be signs of what's to come in the fall for Notre Dame.

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Notre Dame football 2026 linebacker target Markel "Kel" Dabney wrapped up his multi-day visit to Notre Dame on Saturday following the Blue-Gold Game.

The 6-foot-1, 208-pound Dabney is not yet rated or ranked by Rivals yet, but picked up an offer on Pot of Gold Day. He reports 17 total offers including Duke, Miami (Fla.), NC State, Ole Miss, Penn State and South Carolina.

Dabney attends Richmond (Va.) Huguenot, and camped at Notre Dame last summer. I spoke with him on Sunday once he returned home to go over his trip, time with the coaches, what he saw from the program over the course of his visit and more.

"From the day I got down there and until the day I left, all of it was great," Dabney told Inside ND Sports. "The first day was an unofficial they showed me the whole campus [and] all of it looked amazing. The second day was the walkthrough before the spring game ... not much action but still productive [and] the last day was the Blue and Gold game. The game was interesting on both sides of the ball both teams were making big plays and it was easy to enjoy watching it."

On linebackers coach Max Bullough:

"The conversation I enjoyed the most was when me and Coach Max was breaking down my defensive film ... it was really good to hear a former NFL linebacker say good things about me but he also gave me some advice so I can increase my game play at linebacker."

More on ND:

"The message they left was for me [was] to get back up there for a game-day visit ... it definitely gave me the positive feeling that they are really heavily recruiting me. And it feels great that I’m one of their priorities after Pot of Gold Day. I’m one of the only two people in the Richmond area to have an offer from Notre Dame so that truly means everything to me."

As a sophomore, Dabney tallied 28 total tackles including three for loss. He also forced three fumbles (recovered two) and had an interception. Dabney also plays running back for Huguenot.

He expects to return for a visit next season for a home game.

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Notre Dame football wrapped up its spring visit season with Saturday’s Blue-Gold Game. A big focus for the weekend was so many of the 2025 commitments returning to campus, getting to hang out with each other and spend some time with the 2024 signees who will join the team In June.

Notre Dame’s so far along in the 2025 cycle with 19 commitments that the Irish had more targets on campus in the 2026 class than the 2025 class. But if we go back to include earlier in the week, Notre Dame got three talented 2025 targets on campus.

2025 RB target James Simon
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Though Notre Dame’s need for Simon seems low, the Irish remain interested in him following a “really great visit,” a source told me. As I mentioned in The Heat Index, it’s a little difficult to figure out where Notre Dame fits in the bigger picture for Simon. However, for the first time I heard a team other than LSU considered a serious contender: Texas. That will be worth monitoring as Simon shares his official visit plans.

2025 OL target Josh Petty
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As I mentioned in The Heat Index, Petty’s quick visit to Notre Dame on Wednesday felt like this start of his Irish recruitment. And it’s one that Notre Dame thinks it has found a spot in as he considers scheduling an official visit. We’ll see if the Irish can do some catching up in Petty’s recruitment. I did hear from a source that Clemson is the perceived leader for Petty, though his recruitment seems a bit more wide open from the outside.

2025 WR target Jayvan Boggs
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Boggs’ public flirtation with Notre Dame came while on his first campus visit as he tweeted a photo from the Irish Athletics Center on Friday and a photo with head coach Marcus Freeman on Saturday. Notre Dame already landed a spot in his top seven alongside Georgia, Florida, Missouri, UCF, USC and Texas prior to the visit. But the Irish haven’t landed a spot on his official visit schedule yet with trips to USC, Georgia and Missouri planned for June. A source described Boggs’ visit as “good,” but I’m not getting the sense that Notre Dame jumped up toward the top of those seven schools.

Not all of the expected 2026 targets made it to campus. DE Evan Harvey, DE Trenton Henderson and CB Jordan Thomas were no-shows. But the Irish did have a late addition to the list: DE Braeden Jones. He’s one of three 2026 targets who visited who I think Notre Dame’s probably leading for.

2026 DE target Braeden Jones
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Jones already has the feeling of a “gotta get” recruit for the Irish in the 2026 class. He’s a profile fit, he has the size and strength and he’s starting to draw attention in Chicago from the SEC. Notre Dame likes its early positioning with Jones.

2026 DT target Elijah Golden
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Golden hasn’t been shy about his appreciation for Notre Dame. So it shouldn’t be surprising that he had a “really good visit,” per a source. He spent some time with Freeman while on campus. I think ND leads until further notice.

2026 S target Nick Reddish
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@Charleston Bowles caught up with Reddish to discuss how well his Notre Dame visit went. His positive thoughts were shared behind the scenes as well. If Reddish checks another box or two in his recruitment, he may have the green light to commit if he wants to.

2026 LB target Maurice Barnes
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Notre Dame connected well with both Barnes and his family during the visit. The first impression of Barnes is he’s a fit at Notre Dame. Penn State should be a major player in his recruitment too.

2026 LB target Tai'Yion King
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King went as far as shouting out ND recruiting staffer Carter Auman for the connection they made on his visit. Notre Dame believes it has a real shot at pulling him out of Texas due as so much about the visit and Notre Dame’s football program seemed to resonate with him.

2026 VYP target Cincere Johnson
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Notre Dame loves what it sees in Johnson. And so far he’s exceeded expectations in terms of being a fit with the Irish. He’ll be a hard pull away from Ohio State if the Buckeyes want him, so we’ll see if he becomes a priority there.

2026 ATH Jermaine Santana-Diaz
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Notre Dame became the first program to offer Santana-Diaz last month, and the Irish remain alone on his offer list. He’s expected to return to Notre Dame for a camp this summer so the Irish can verify their interest in him.

2026 LB target Markel Dabney
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Notre Dame hosted Dabney for three days and he plans to be back for a game in the fall. The Irish should be in the mix for Dabney for quite some time.

Notre Dame left no doubt in its finale of a three-game sweep of Boston College.

Four Irish pitchers combined to no-hit the Eagles, and Notre Dame's bats produced 13 runs to cut the game short with the run rule in the seventh inning.

It's the first time Notre Dame (20-18, 5-16 ACC) has been on the winning end of a series sweep in the ACC this season and just the second ACC series win. The Irish have been swept by conference foes five times this season.

Notre Dame scored its 13 runs in three innings against BC (20-19, 7-14). The Irish plated three runs each in the first and second innings and then pushed the lead to 13 with seven runs in the fourth. Notre Dame slugged five home runs in the blowout at Frank Eck Stadium

Second baseman Estevan Moreno hit two-run home runs in both the first and second innings. Third baseman Simon Baumgardt hit a solo shot in the first inning. Shortstop Jack Penney, who registered an RBI in the second inning on a fielder's choice and an RBI in the fourth with a single, hit a solo home run in the fourth inning as well.

Catcher Carson Tinney mashed a grand slam in the fourth innning. Right fielder Tito Flores also plated Moreno with a double in the fourth.

Sophomore Rory Fox retired five batters to start the game for the Irish with two strikeouts and one hit batter. Graduate student Tobey McDonough earned the win (2-2) with 3 1/3 innings of work with two strikeouts and one walk. Senior Sammy Cooper and graduate student Will Jacobsen closed out the game with one inning each of hitless efforts.

Notre Dame is scheduled to host Central Michigan (13-27) on Wednesday (6:30 p.m. EDT ACCNX) before Wake Forest (26-13, 11-10) comes to town for a three-game series starting Friday.

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I'm not just talking about their second or third string guy that was skying the snap or putting it on the ground. Even the starting center's snaps were coming out very low causing Angeli to catch it as his knees or lower. That shouldn't happen. It looks like their offense is predicated on working from the shotgun, so hopefully the centers really work on this.

@Eric Hansen and I discuss the biggest takeaways from Notre Dame's Blue-Gold Game, which Blue won by a 28-21 margin over Gold.

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For the second straight game, Notre Dame pounced on Boston College with a big first inning and Saturday went on to maul the visiting Eagles, 9-4, in an ACC baseball game at Eck Stadium.

The Irish (19-18, 4-16) go for the three-game sweep of BC (20-18, 7-13) Sunday at 1 p.m. EDT.

David Glancy hit a two-run homer for Notre Dame in the four-run first and finished 3-for-6 with three RBIs.Jack Penney had a double among his three hits, and he drove in a run.

Brady Gumph hit a two-run homer, and leadoff hitter TJ Williams upped his season average to .378 with a 2-for-3 day. He scored two runs and stole a base.

Freshman Jack Radel (3-2) picked up the win with five innings of work, giving up three earned runs on nine hits. He didn’t walk anyone and struck out five.

NOTRE DAME 9, BOSTON COLLEGE 4: Box Score

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2026 safety target Nick Reddish was one of many rising targets who landed offers on Pot of Gold Day last month that made their way to campus for Notre Dame football's Blue-Gold Game on Saturday.

Former safeties coach Chris O'Leary began planting seeds in Reddish's recruitment last year, and before O'Leary left for the NFL, he stopped by Charlotte (N.C.) Independence to visit and recruit Reddish during the contact period in January.

Reddish has 10 total offers including ND, Connecticut, Missouri, Wake Forest and Virginia Tech. He has visited Wake Forest twice and also made an unofficial visit to Virginia Tech earlier this month. Nick's brother, Quentin Reddish, is an early enrollee for the Hokies. Nick and Qunetin started together in Independece's secondary in 2022 and 2023.

Last fall, Nick was named to the Southern Carolina all-conference first-team. That's the same conference that 2024 TE signee and early enrollee Jack Larsen played for during his high school career at Charlotte Catholic. Independence defeated Charlotte Catholic 31-10 last September.

I spoke with Nick on Saturday after the conclusion of his visit to learn about his trip, favorite highlights of the day, messages from staff and more.

On the experience of first unofficial visit to Notre Dame:

"The visit was amazing ... my two favorite two moments was definitely when I got one-on-one time with the coaches and at the spring game, talking to other recruits and kicking it," Nick told Inside ND Sports.

On message from coaching staff:

"It was awesome being able to get wisdom from those people with a big background. [We] mainly talked about the education and how it will change my life. [Head coach Marcus Freeman said] stay focused and keep competing every day. It's a blessing being able to get an offer from a big-time school like this."

Rivals has not yet assigned a rating or ranking to Nick. He said his loved his time and definitely wants to return for another visit.

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I’m attaching a YouTube link to one of the very best analyses I have seen that puts rankings and draft picks in proper perspective. Analysis and video by Michael MacKelvie.

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Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman updated the injury status of Jadarian Price, Cam Williams and Styles Prescod today.

The quarterbacks have made their way onto the field at Notre Dame Stadium to start throwing the ball around, so let's get the game thread rolling for today's Blue-Gold Game.

It's a chilly, windy day in South Bend, so I wouldn't expect a very large crowd today.

You can watch the game on Peacock at 1 p.m. EDT. You can also listen to @Eric Hansen as part of the radio call with WSBT's Darin Pritchett.

We will use this game thread as the primary home for game commentary from now until after the game. We have some rules we'll ask you to follow, which will be included below.

If you're not following the rules and do not respond well to reminders, we'll remove you're posting privileges for the rest of the day. We have too much to do today to argue about it during the game. This doesn't happen often as we're pretty lenient in the game thread, but please keep that in mind.

@HotCarNut has disciplinary powers as a moderator. You can argue with him about the game, but do not argue with him about the rules.

Our game thread rules:

1. Use this thread until the end of the game for ongoing game commentary. We'd like to keep the conversation in one place. If something from the game merits a separate conversation of substance, go ahead and start another thread for that topic. When in doubt, post in the game thread.

2. Criticism of decision-making by coaches and players is allowed. But please avoid making it personal. Don't be malicious. Remember, that person's mother could be reading your post. If you cross the line, you'll lose posting privileges for the day.

3. Don't be a doofus. Have some respect for your fellow subscribers.

I'll have live updates from Marcus Freeman in this thread.

Four Notre Dame players hit home runs, including Carson Tinney’s inside-the-park shot, as the Irish romped past visiting Boston College, 14-3, in the first game of a three-game ACC baseball series Friday night at Eck Stadium.

The game was shortened to seven innings because of the ACC’s 10-run rule.
Tito Flores, TJ Williams and Joey Spence also homered. Tinney, a freshman catcher, hit his solo home run as a pinch hitter.

Flores drove in four runs and Spence three and six players had at least two hits each for Notre Dame (18-18, 3-16), which broke a 10-game ACC losing streak in a big way.

Shortstop Jack Penney had two of Notre Dame’s five doubles. First baseman Connor Hincks had a triple among his three hits.

The Irish jumped on Boston College starter Michael Farinelli for six runs in the bottom of the first inning. He was pulled in the second without recording an out and was charged with two more earned runs.

Matt Bedord (2-5) pitched five effective innings against the Eagles (20-17, 7-12), giving up four hits, two runs — one earned, and two walks.

The teams play game 2 at 2 p.m. on Saturday.

NOTRE DAME 14, BOSTON COLLEGE 3: Box Score

Story coming early evening ... Really impressive person. Mature, thoughtful and he gets my sense of humor, which is quite a skill set.

The 6-0, 186-pound CB from Rice took his official visit to Notre Dame on Thursday. We talked on the phone today, and he's in El Paso visiting UTEP. He had that visit scheduled before he agreed to come up Notre Dame. He said he's a man of his word and had promised UTEP he'd visit. Has one set up to Houston next week, and Tulane wants to set one up as well.

Things have picked up at lightning speed since the portal reopened on April 16. Devones said he's hearing from ACC, SEC and Big Ten schools.

He had originally set a decision date deadline of May 1, but ... "I’m a prayer-first guy. When I first got into this process, I was like May 1. May 1. Then I was just like, ‘I’m kind of putting God on a timeline.’ You can’t do that. So no, I’m going to pray on it and give it completely to God. He's been opening doors and I’m grateful for it, and I’m kind of taking it day by day. "

He can play all three CB positions and did so at Rice. ND loves his versatility. Didn't promise him he could start, but that he could compete for a role in the rotation. The Duncanville, Texas, product said he loved everything about ND on his visit. Especially Marcus Freeman.

"Man, that guy speaks with some energy. You talk to him, and there’s something really special is going to happen at Notre Dame. That coach right there, I was sitting in the seat talking to him, and I’m like, ‘Man, let’s go put on the pads. I’m already down.’ But I had to keep myself contained."

I'll save the rest for the story.

Starter Matt Bedford gave Notre Dame a strong start on the mound, and the Irish bullpen made it stand up Friday as ND got its first ACC baseball win of the season with a 6-2 conquest of Miami.

The best-of-three series continues Saturday at Notre Dame’s Eck Stadium with a 2 p.m. EDT start in Game 2.

Bedford went 4 ⅓ innings, giving up one earned run on four hits and a walk. The senior right-hander struck out seven. Sophomore righty Caden Spivey (1-0) got the win with 2 ⅔ innings of shutout relief. Davidson grad transfer Bennett Flynn finished up, allowing a run in two innings of work. Notre Dame started the day 205th nationally out of 295 Division I teams in team ERA (6.80).

The Irish (13-8, 1-6 ACC) took the lead for good, 2-1, in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI triple by catcher Joey Spence followed by an RBI groundout by Brady Gumph. Notre Dame added three more runs in the seventh and two in the eighth, with Miami (12-9,.4-3) pushing across single runs in the second and eighth frames.

Leadoff hitter and center fielder TJ Williams went 2-for-5 with two RBIs and a run scored. Spence went 2-for-3, and shortstop Jack Penney had two hits as well, a single and a triple.

NOTRE DAME 6, MIAMI 2: Box Score

I spoke to some sources today regarding everything going on with Notre Dame women’s hoops. Building on Maddy Westbeld’s formal announcement on Monday that she is returning for 2024-25, here’s the latest:

On the injury front, Kylee Watson had her ACL surgery last week after suffering an ACL tear on March 9. The very general timeline for full recovery is projected as nine months. Even the most optimistic, ahead-of schedule window wouldn’t have her ready for the start of the season in November. So, it could be midseason. It could be longer.

Guards Emma Risch (hip surgery) and Cass Prosper (leg) are shooting around these days but haven’t been medically cleared to do everything from a basketball standpoint. The hope and projection is that they both will be able to go full speed when summer school starts in June.

So where does that put Notre Dame from an incoming transfer portal standpoint? Let’s start with Marquette forward Liza Karlen, who was rumored to be visiting the Notre Dame campus this weekend. That was fiction, not that there isn’t some interest in the 6-2 All-Big East forward. But head coach Niele Ivey, Cass Prosper, Hannah Hidalgo and assistant coach Carol Owens were all out of town, so a visit this past weekend didn’t make a lot of sense.

I’m anticipating the Irish will have two or three transfer prospects in for visits this weekend. That’s their plan, I’m told. But which prospects seem to change on a daily basis, as new names cause both individuals and teams to reprioritize. Ideally, with the right fit, Notre Dame will take two bigs via the portal. A guard is more of a luxury and would again have to be an ideal fit and someone willing to play a reserve role. But for now that’s in play too.

Grad transfers are the easiest to take from an admissions standpoint, but the Irish would look at a young post player/forward as well.

As far as the 2025 cycle, official visits could start on April 9, and Notre Dame could host some this month, next month or in June. No official visits at this time have been scheduled. A lot of players are playing club ball after their high school seasons have ended, so summer visits might make more sense.

ND’s top three targets in 2025 are all five-star prospects and all ranked in the top 15 of the latest ESPNw rankings.

They are:

6-1 guard Aaliyah Crump, from Minnetonka, Minn. She’s ranked No. 5 overall in the 2025 class, the same spot Irish future center Kate Koval was ranked in 2024 and where All-America point guard Hannah Hidalgo was ranked in 2023. Crump has been to ND on three or four unofficial visits, including this past January.

6-0 guard ZaKiyah Johnson from Sacred Heart Academy in Louisville, Ky. She hasn’t been to ND yet, but she hasn’t really done much campus visiting yet of any kind. There is strong mutual interest here. She’s No. 7 overall in the ESPNw rankings.

6-2 forward Leah Macy of Bethlehem High School in Bardstown, Ky. Macy is the No. 14 player overall in the 2025 class, and has visited Notre Dame three times already.

I don’t anticipate any more roster surprises. I am hearing Becky Obinma is petitioning the NCAA for a seventh year, having to do with her time at her first school, TCU. Even if that’s granted, I don’t expect her to be at Notre Dame in the coming season.

One note on the Hannah Hidalgo nose ring fiasco. The call to have her remove it did not come from the game officials on site, but from an NCAA official who called in after seeing it on TV. Hidalgo had worn it all season with a Band-Aid over it. It is a permanent ring, so it’s not something she ever had removed before. When it was removed, it caused significant pain and bleeding.

These are the kinds of things that my brain thinks of when I'm not busy:

One of the four September opponents (Purdue) is roughly at the geographic center of the other three (NIU, Miami, Louisville), and is about a 3 hour drive from each.

How good has Jaden Greathouse been this spring? Offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock, wide receivers coach Mike Brown and defensive backs coach Mike Mickens all had good things to say about him.

“His versatility is off the charts," Denbrock said.

"Even if you're there, you put the ball in his vicinity he's done a really good job of coming down with it," Brown said.

"He causes a lot of problems for people," Mickens said.

Wow. Cleaning up in the portal. Paid 2.1 million for 7 footer from ariz. new game out there boys and girls

We can confirm reports that Notre Dame recently promoted director of recruiting Dre Brown is taking a job as director of player personnel for the Illinois football program. FootballScoop.com's John Brice was first with the news.
The 26-year-old from DeKalb, Ill., is an Illinois graduate and played running back for the Fighting Illini. He also has a master's from his alma mater. Brown joined Notre Dame at the tail end of the coach Brian Kelly Era in the summer of 2021 and has served in a variety of roles, with recruiting always a constant as he continued on with ND when Marcus Freeman became the head coach in December of 2021.
Assistant athletic director, player personnel Chad Bowden continues to lead Freeman's recruiting and scouting efforts and will be charged with replacing Brown.