2026 LB Markel Dabney Thrilled With Notre Dame Offer
Markel Dabney felt he proved himself at Notre Dame’s camp last summer.
Apparently, the 2026 Virginia linebacker did just that as he was offered a scholarship by the Irish on St. Patrick’s Day.
“I felt good,” the 6-foot-1, 200-pounder told Irish Sports Daily. “When I camped last year, I did really good, so when he called me, I was just so surprised and very blessed that he threw the offer.”
The Huguenot High School standout received the news from Notre Dame linebackers coach Max Bullough.
“He liked how I competed,” Dabney said of Bullough. “He liked how competitive I am and he said that I would be a great addition to the linebacker room at Notre Dame. And then he offered me.”
Dabney actually received the news of the offer in February, but waited to post it as part of the Irish’s Pot of Gold push.
His offer sheet also includes schools like Virginia Tech, Penn State, Miami, Duke, Ole Miss, Tennessee, West Virginia and Arizona among others.
With the offer in hand, Dabney is now set to return to South Bend for another visit this weekend.
He’s looking forward to getting a better feel for the program this time.
“How the LB meetings are going to be, how their practices are run and all that other stuff,” he said of what he’d like to see.
The first trip certainly made a positive impression.
“I just liked how the vibe was,” he said. “There aren’t too many people. That's a place where I can be focused. I can focus on my schoolwork and football. There are not a lot of distractions going on. I can be focused on my schoolwork and football.”
He’s already visited Penn State this spring and has plans to be at Duke on Tuesday. He’s also set to attend spring games at Virginia Tech and South Carolina later this month.
A commitment isn’t coming anytime soon, but he already has a potential date circled.
“I was thinking about on my birthday next year, August 28th.”
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