Kirby Smart crashes Notre Dame’s recruiting party with surprise linebacker threat

Notre Dame momentum stalls as top 2026 linebacker commit reopens door to SEC powerhouse.
Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Even when a school is on the kind of recruiting run that Notre Dame football is on at the moment, it’s important to remember that recruiting in this day and age is always going to have some ups and downs. The big downer this week is that a commit that seemed totally and completely locked in for the Fighting Irish in Thomas Davis Jr. is suddenly not looking all that locked down.

Earlier this spring, the 4-star linebacker seemed to let Georgia and Kirby Smart know that he had no interest in playing between the hedges. Things appear to have changed considering the legacy prospect is in Athens this weekend.

Thomas Davis Jr visit to Georgia puts Notre Dame football on flip watch for coveted 2026 linebacker

The Notre Dame football team had to expect that things were completely done in this battle, even if Davis said otherwise. After all, his father was an All-American for the Dawgs and it’s a safe bet his father would love to see him follow in his footsteps.

In his three seasons at the varsity level for Weddington High School, Davis appeared in 43 games, racking up 185 tackles, 23.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, five interceptions, 25 pass deflections and three fumble recoveries. 

In other words, if Georgia is able to flip the Notre Dame football commit it would be a huge addition to a 2026 recruiting class, which already features 10 commitments and ranks No. 2 in the SEC and No. 5 in the nation. It would also be a massive loss for the Irish and would be a big blow to momentum that has looked unstoppable.