Elite 2026 WR Kaydon Finley Goes In-Depth On Notre Dame Commitment

In the end, it was actually an easy decision for Kaydon Finley‍.

“In the middle of my recruitment, oh my gosh, I thought it was impossible to make my decision,” the 2026 Texas receiver told Irish Sports Daily of his commitment to Notre Dame.

Last Friday, Finley announced he was choosing the Irish over his other finalists; Arizona State, Texas A&M and Texas. 

Notre Dame was considered the leader for months, but the Longhorns made a strong push over the final few weeks, leading up to official visits in June. 

He took an unofficial to South Bend at the beginning of June and turned around and took an official visit the second weekend of the month. 

“They just blew it out of the water,” the Aledo High School star said. “It got easier as the end came.

“I think the official visit really set it over the top for me. Throughout the whole recruiting process, I think Notre Dame was always the trending school that I would land at. But just that OV really gave me clarity on where I wanted to be for the next three to four years.”

He took an official to Texas a week later, but his mind was close to being made up by that point. 

“I think after the Notre Dame visit, I was pretty much set on where I wanted to go to college,” he said. “I visited Texas just for a little more clarity. It was pretty easy at the end. Notre Dame made it easy for me to decide.”

Finley pointed to one thing immediately that Notre Dame offered. 

“The relationships,” he said. “The people around the building, the recruits, also. The commits they brought in. And also the community that revolves around the football program and the academics.

“I'm a big relationship guy, so just going to all these other schools, seeing how their relationships are with the players, with me, just being around them, it never really felt the same as Notre Dame. Notre Dame, it was different. It felt like family off the jump as soon as I got there on my OV. All the recruits bonded very well. The coaching staff was around us at all times. We were all laughing together, having a good time together. It just felt like an instant family.”

Finley formed bonds with several staff members including head coach Marcus Freeman, offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock, receivers coach Mike Brown, assistant receivers coach Dom Spalding and Director of Recruiting Carter Auman. 

Finley is excited to be a part of the impressive 2026 class Notre Dame has built.

“It feels amazing just to know I have a big community surrounding me,” he said. “I can put my trust in the coaching staff and the players surrounding me. Notre Dame doesn't recruit just any football player. You also have to be a great person. It's just great knowing that I'll be surrounded by other hard-working, smart individuals.”

Finley kicked off a trio of receiver commits for the Irish last weekend, preceding announcements from Arizona’s Devin Fitzgerald‍ and fellow Texan, Brayden Robinson‍.

“The receivers who are committed to Notre Dame, they're different,” he said. “They all have a good work ethic, and we're all best friends. We knew right after the visit that Notre Dame is the place we all wanted to be, so we just set it up to the 4th, the 5th and the 6th. It all worked out. It's just great being surrounded by a great group of other kids and players.”

Finley expects his versatility to be put to use in South Bend.

“I think they're going to use me a little bit everywhere on the field,” he said. “There's no specific position, really. I really like that. I think I can play everywhere on the field. I can do anything that Coach Denbrock or Coach Brown or Coach Free needs of me. 

“I just think that that's the best position I'll succeed at; just doing whatever they need on the field, playing every position.”

His family, including his father who played at Texas, are thrilled with his decision, according to Finley.

“They love it. They love the coaching staff, the parents of the other commits also. My little brother was on the visit with me too, he absolutely loved it. He cried when we left just because he was so sad to leave those people. I think that says enough itself, and so that's also a big reason why I went to Notre Dame.”

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