2026 OL Owen Winder Enjoys Notre Dame Camp & Learning from Joe Rudolph
2026 Dexter (Mich.) offensive lineman Owen Winder made the three-hour trip down to Notre Dame last week for Irish Invasion.
The 6-foot-6, 290-pounder enjoyed himself as he showcased an improved game against some of the top defensive linemen in the 2025 recruiting class.
“I did pretty well,” stated Winder. “There was some great competition out there. I feel I overall improved as a player.
“There were great players, fast and strong players. It was awesome.”
It was another opportunity to see how he measures up to other 2026 offensive linemen, and it was also a tune-up for the season, which is around the corner.
It’s the time of the year where conditioning is a factor as players are transitioning back into football workouts, so Winder definitely felt the added workload early.
“I think that was within the first 30 minutes,” laughed Winder. “I realized I was out of shape. It was a stretch, but we got through it and I loved it.”
Winder wanted to work with Joe Rudolph and embraced the chance to learn from one of the nation’s top offensive line coaches.
“Overall, foot speed, placement with my hands, I feel Coach Rudolph did a great job teaching and preaching that to us,” Winder said of what Rudolph focused on during the camp. “It was awesome.”
Winder welcomed the areas of focus, as those have been key points of emphasis for him over the last year.
“Overall, my foot speed has gotten so much better,” Winder said of his improvements over the last year. “Strength. I feel I’ve overall improved as a player.”
The camp also gave Winder a true feel for Rudolph's coaching style, but the Michigan native also saw immediate improvements.
“I feel he’s very technical,” explained Winder. “He breaks down a lot of stuff. For sets, he breaks it down, so when you take it all together, you see those improvements in everything.”
Notre Dame won’t be the only camp Winder will do this summer. He was at Kentucky a few days after Irish Invasion and then he’ll make a stop this week further west.
“I have Kentucky and then I have BYU on June 10-12,” stated Winder. “I’ll be back at Michigan State on June 18th.
Winder holds early offers from Akron, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Duke, Eastern Michigan, Kentucky, Miami (OH), Toledo and Western Michigan.
As of now, there isn’t a specific offer Winder covets, but he’s hoping to jump into the next tier soon.
“I’m open to anything right now,” said Winder. “Preferably Power 5, but anything is an offer.”
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