LB Thomas Davis Jr. Becoming the Face of Notre Dame's 2026 Class

Over the years, Notre Dame has seen several commits step into the forefront and lead their class.

Markese Stepp, Blake Fisher, Drayk Bowen, and CJ Carr all come to mind when thinking about players who took great pride in connecting Notre Dame’s commits and embracing recruiting other players to South Bend. 

2026 Notre Dame linebacker commit Thomas Davis Jr.‍ has quickly established himself as the face of the class and made it very clear he will be aggressive on the recruiting trail. 

“It was definitely something I have been looking forward to,” Davis told ISD. “When you commit to a school, you want to bring the best guys - the best football players and the best guys you can. You want to be on a good team. 

“I’ve been trying to build relationships with other players to have that common goal of wanting to be great. Notre Dame is the best place to be football-wise and non-football-wise. They bring in great people and I’m trying to help add to that.” 

Davis also takes pride in seeing other kids commit to Notre Dame. He might not be the main reason the Irish receive a verbal pledge, but Davis knows he played a small part in improving the program. 

“100 percent,” stated Davis when asked if there is pride in building Notre Dame’s class. “It definitely feels good to get commits. We’re all striving for the same goal.” 

The Charlotte native also knows the direction of Notre Dame’s class starts in his home state. Davis is all over defensive end Rodney Dunham‍, defensive end Ebenezer Ewetade‍, defensive tackle Noah Clark‍ and safety Nicholas Reddish‍ as all of them will be in South Bend over the next few months. 

“I’ve been trying to go after pretty much all of them,” explained Davis. “I keep going after all them heavily. I’m talking to them to see where their head is at knowing they are interested in the program. I’ve been pushing to get all of them up there.

“I’ve already had friendships with a few of them. I’ve known Rodney and Nick for a while, so that helps out.” 

Davis doesn’t feel there is a balance between maintaining friendships and a recruiting relationship. That speaks to the depth of the relationship Davis has created over the years, but also that his friends are listening to him. 

“It’s not me having to push them,” Davis said. “They know what they want in their recruitment or in a school. I’m just trying to help them feel the love and understand what they would be committing to. I’m trying to lead by example and explain why I committed to Notre Dame. They understand what it is and now it’s about picking the best spot for themselves.” 

Notre Dame has seen some changes over the last month, but Davis never got cold feet despite seeing defensive coordinator Al Golden and general manager Chad Bowden leave the program. 

New defensive coordinator Chris Ash has spoken to Davis twice since he was hired and the Weddington (N.C.) star has walked away impressed each time. 

“He definitely seems very educated and intelligent,” stated Davis. “He knows what he’s talking about and he has a ton of experience. He seems like a great guy. We’ve had some pretty good conversations already.” 

Ash and Davis both share NFL backgrounds. Ash has coached in the league since 2021, while Davis’ father, Thomas, played in the NFL for 16 seasons. 

The two have connected over that and Davis knows his defensive coordinator can put him in a spot to reach his ultimate dream because Ash understands what it takes to get there. 

“That’s fun to talk about with him,” Davis explained. “With him having experience in the NFL, I’m always interested in learning more about it and what it was like in the league. He can bring some of that knowledge to make us better.” 

With official visits around the corner, Notre Dame’s class currently sits at seven commits. Davis has made sure to connect with each commit and important bonds are already being formed before they officially arrive on campus. 

“Noah (Grubbs) and I talk all the time. Dylan Faison and I talk all the time. I talk to Chaz Smith all the time. I’ve started to talk to some of our offensive line commits. All the offensive line commits are really funny, so I enjoy talking to them. Tyler Merrill and Ben (Nichols) are funny guys.” 

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