Zayden Gamble isn’t just devoted to Notre Dame; he’s also working hard to help bring some of the best talent in the country to the 2027 class. The 4-star safety committed to the Fighting Irish earlier this spring and is already active in peer recruiting. One player he has his eyes on is Julius Jones Jr., and Gamble wants to make sure Marcus Freeman and Co. reel him in.
Gamble recently talked to Rivals about how he’s working to get the legacy prospect to South Bend for good. “I’m putting my blood, sweat, and tears to get Julius Jones to Notre Dame.” That’s certainly a sentiment the coaching staff will appreciate. They are also working extra hard to try to get the son of the famed Fighting Irish running back Julius Jones to follow in his father’s footsteps.
Notre Dame also put in plenty of blood, sweat, and tears to land Zayden Gamble, and the Irish had been after him for over a year. They hosted him for the first time in March and for the next month, secondary coach Aaron Henry and the Irish staff were able to close the deal. In April, he officially pulled the trigger. For some reason, coaches believed he was quite poachable, but he proved them wrong a couple of times by announcing that he’d shut down his recruiting. He doubled down on that just a few weeks ago.
As a junior, Gamble was a key force on his high school’s defense, which was a driving force behind their 14-1 campaign that ended with a state championship. St. Thomas Aquinas blanked Lakeland by a 29-0 score in the state championship game, and Gamble was a star, making six tackles, picking off a pass, and breaking up another. He finished his junior season with 65 tackles, 3 interceptions, 4 pass breakups, and 3 tackles for loss. St. Thomas Aquinas finished the year as the No. 10 team in the MaxPreps Top 25 national rankings.
Four-star Notre Dame safety commit Zayden Gamble is doing everything in his power to help the Irish land elite WR Julius Jones Jr. 👀☘️https://t.co/DcBIEA7yA7 pic.twitter.com/uw7DxtGt8O
— Mike Singer (@MikeTSinger) June 10, 2026
Zayden Gamble is helping Notre Dame football recruit Julius Jones Jr.
Notre Dame's ability to dip into the state of Florida to land a talented player from one of the nation's best programs was a big win for the Irish.
Gamble also has the inside track for Julius Jones Jr as the two are teammates at St. Thomas Aquinas. That means that even if the 4-star wide receiver doesn’t commit to the Fighting Irish soon, Gamble will have all fall to work on him while they practice and try to improve on the 2025 season.
As a sophomore, Jones caught 51 passes for 750 yards (14.7 YPC) and 8 TD. He followed that season up with an even better 58 catches for 876 yards (15.1 YPC) and 14 TD. The No. 75 player in the 2027 class, the No. 12 receiver, and No. 8 player in the state of Florida is considered a lean to Notre Dame. Now Marcus Freeman and his staff need to team up with Zayden Gamble to close the deal.
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