The Notre Dame football team is on a heck of a roll on the recruiting front. Marcus Freeman and company have hauled in some big prospects over the last few weeks. And now they’re locking down visits and making the Final Five schools for even more.
All of this happens after the Fighting Irish were once considered to be having a very bad 2026 recruiting cycle. Then, suddenly they started to surge. They’re even surging for the 2027 class as evidenced by the recent unofficial visit of a 5-star wide receiver.
The Notre Dame football team is now among the final choices for one of the best running backs in the 2026 class. Brian Bonner announced he’d cut down his list and in addition to the Blue and Gold, he’s looking at Washington, Nebraska, UCLA and Penn State.
Some of the things that 4*+ running back Brian Bonner is looking for in a perspective college. pic.twitter.com/MbW9HOIQbI
— Tom Lemming (@LemmingReport) April 15, 2025
Can Notre Dame football seal the deal with 4-star RB Brian Bonner?
The running back, from Valencia, California is looking like he wants to have his official choice locked in this summer. According to the On3 Industry Rankings Bonner is the No. 99 player in the class and the seventh best running back. He’s also the 14th best player in the state of California.
Bonner has taken several unofficial visits including three to Washington and two to Nebraksa. So far he’s only had one unofficial visit to Notre Dame. It’s possible he could be coming back to South Bend before his official commitment.
In a separate interview with Tom Lemming, Bonner laid out why he’s considering the Fighting Irish and it should come as no surprise that education is at the top of his list.
“Some things that I look for in a school is education. I think education is really important for all athletes to have a good education. And I just look for a really good coaching staff, and a coaching staff that will take care of me.”
Notre Dame football has long been able to lean on what it has to offer after playing days are over. It looks like Brian Bonner has been listening to that argument. With no official commitment date yet, the Irish will have at least a few more weeks to push that narrative.