Elijah Golden has been a priority target for Al Washington and the Notre Dame coaching staff for years. All of that time building the relationship between Golden and the people involved with the program has finally led to his commitment. He's the newest member of Notre Dame’s 2026 recruiting class.
Golden has experience wrestling in high school, has a recorded broad jump of 8-7.9, measured in with 35 inch arms earlier, and had an impressive 1.75 10-yard split earlier this year. He’s a blue-chip prospect with big time traits.
Height: 6’4”
Weight: 275
Projected Position: Defensive tackle
ISD Grade: 92 (4-star)
National Average Grade: 91.7 (4-star)
What he does best:
Golden is twitchy. He flashes an explosive get off.
He has elite pass rush tools with his length, strength, and lateral movement.
He has the flexibility to win from multiple alignments in multiple ways. He’s not strictly a speed or power rusher.
What he needs to improve:
His snap anticipation needs work. That’s something that is very fixable, but he can be more disruptive with his twitch once it improves.
Overall he has to become more consistent technically with his hands and feet. He also has some work to do with his block recognition. All of that should come in time working with Washington and Nick Sebastian at Notre Dame.
What’s his ceiling?
The reason why Golden is such a coveted prospect for Notre Dame and other blue-bloods like Alabama and Oklahoma has everything to do with his ceiling. His length combined with his quickness can help him develop into a disruptive player who can create the kind of havoc that every defense craves.
He has the frame to grow into an absolute beast. I think we’ll likely see a similar trajectory as former Notre Dame defensive tackle Rylie Mills in a lot of ways. Mills had a lot of big time traits as well and added significant weight at Notre Dame, but needed some time to develop his overall game.
By the time he left, Mills was a great player for the Irish who led the team in pressures and tackles for loss last season. He might have been a day two pick in the NFL Draft if not for tearing his knee during the College Football Playoff.
Golden has that kind of potential if he puts in the work to get there. I’m excited to see his development during his senior season.
Who he could be:
Former Notre Dame defensive tackle Rylie Mills
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