2026 CB Commit Chaston Smith Returns To Notre Dame

Chaston Smith‍ returned to Notre Dame for the first time as a committed prospect and the 2026 Tennessee cornerback was reminded why he made that decision in the first place.

“It went real good,” Smith told ISD. “It felt like home.

“I got to see the players compete in practice. They competed real well against one another. I got to see how the DBs worked out, how they practiced and how Coach (Mike) Mickens coached.”

Smith was impressed with Mickens at practice.

“Coach Mickens, he coaches them real well, teaches them great technique and teaches him how to play certain routes and breaks down certain things to them real well and makes it very understandable,” the 6-foot-2, 175-pounder said. 

He was also able to pick the brains of some of the current players.

“I talked to some of them just to see how the transition from them going from high school and into college and how they took things more serious and what would they do and what would they recommend,” the McCallie standout said.

The feedback was clear.

“Don't take any plays off, just keep competing and always just work hard at everything you do,” he said of what the players told him. “And always carry a notebook around.”

Smith enjoyed his meetings with the Irish coaches. 

“They were real good,” he said. “They were just letting me know this is the place to be and Notre Dame is more than just football and can help me with life after football.”

He met new Irish defensive coordinator Chris Ash for the first time.

“Great first impression,” said Smith. “It felt right when I met Coach Ash. We clicked and just had an immediate connection when we first had a conversation. It felt like the right fit.”

Smith said he and Mickens have a “great relationship.”

“He's just taken me in,” Smith continued. “I feel like I'm already one of his own, even though I'm not on campus yet. It just feels like I'm already one of his own. Me and him have a great relationship, funny relationship. He shows a little bit of tough love, which I like that.”

Smith will be back for an official visit in June.

Despite his commitment, Smith continues to be pursued by other schools, something Smith acknowledged as flattering, but said he isn’t thinking about that much right now.

“I haven't really talked about other schools with my family yet,” he said. “We've just been focused on the future right now.”

He said he hadn’t taken any other visits recently and didn’t know of any planned for the future either. 

The Irish will certainly need to continue recruiting Smith, which shouldn’t be a surprise considering this was just his second visit to South Bend. But he certainly has very strong feelings about Notre Dame.

“Home. Great. It just feels like a dream knowing that I'm committed to Notre Dame and just what the legacy was before and what it is now. It just keeps building up knowing I can be a part of something great.”

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