While the Notre Dame football team is off to as good a start as anyone could have expected, a few Irish commits are off to fantastic early outings. 4-star EDGE Jackson Vaughn and 4-star running back Lathan Whisenton are right at the top of that list.
What should make Irish faithful even happier is that Vaughn seems to be improving as the season goes on. In the fourth game at his new home, Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy, the Oradell (N.J.) Bergen Catholic transfer racked up 9 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 2 quarterback pressures.
The performance helped the Notre Dame commit’s team hand a very good Orlando (Fla.) The First Academy team its first loss of the season. Vaughn has been a menace to every offensive line he’s faced. Through four games, he’s tallied 21 tackles, 14 TFLs, 3 sacks, and 2 QB pressures.
Vaughn reclassified to 2027 before committing to Notre Dame on May 26, 2026. He chose the Fighting Irish over Auburn, LSU, Miami, and South Carolina. Vaughn is ranked as the No. 149 player in the 2027 class, the No. 16 EDGE, and the No. 17 player in Florida according to the latest Rivals Industry Rankings.
Notre Dame football's Jackson Vaughn and Lathan Whisenton are delivering monster senior seasons
As a sophomore in 2025, Vaughn recorded 40 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 8 sacks, and 3 pass breakups in 11 games for Bergen Catholic. He earned Sophomore All-America recognition from MaxPreps and Rivals while helping the Crusaders finish 8-3. As a freshman in 2024, he recorded 16 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and 8 sacks, giving him 56 tackles, 23 tackles for loss and 16 sacks across his first two high school seasons.
While Vaughn has wreaked havoc on the defensive side of the ball, Whisenton has dominated on offense. The running back has made the most of his carries all season long. Last week, he ran 15 times for 140 yards and 3 touchdowns in Waco (Texas) Midway’s 21-10 win over Belton High.
Through four games, Whisenton is already halfway to 1,000 rushing yards (502 yards on 59 carries), and he’s found the end zone 8 times. He’s also shown that running the ball isn’t the only way he can hurt opponents. So far this year, Whisenton has 3 receptions for 28 yards and 1 kick return for 36 yards.
Whisenton, a 6-foot-0, 200-pound running back, committed to Notre Dame on March 25, 2026, choosing the Fighting Irish over a group of finalists including Florida, Texas, and Texas Tech.
The rusher is ranked as the No. 142 player in the 2027 class, No. 8 running back, and No. 18 player in Texas, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.
As a junior in 2025, Whisenton rushed for 1,502 yards and 24 touchdowns on 165 carries, averaging 9.1 yards per attempt and 136.5 rushing yards per game. He also caught 10 passes for 102 yards and finished with 1,710 all-purpose yards while helping Midway compile a 9-2 record. Whisenton earned district Co-MVP honors and entered his senior season with 3,247 career rushing yards and 48 rushing touchdowns.
Jackson Vaughn and Lathan Whisenton are just two players in a loaded 2027 recruiting class that has Notre Dame ranked near the top of the country for this cycle.
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