Notre Dame Football Trying to Retake Chicago

Notre Dame has the foundation set for a very good recruiting class in 2027 but what ends up happening in Chicago could determine if it ends up being great

Sep 25, 2021; Chicago, Illinois, USA; The Notre Dame Fighting Irish enter the field prior to the first half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Soldier Field. | Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images

When telling the history of Notre Dame football, the importance of the city of Chicago deserves a very early chapter.

Knute Rockne grew up in the Logan Square neighborhood before turning Notre Dame into a football powerhouse, while Soldier Field on the lakefront was the host of several of the biggest games that helped build the Notre Dame brand into what it is.

Over the years, plenty of Fighting Irish stars have come from The Windy City as well.

George Connor (De Le Salle), Ziggy Czarobski (Mt. Carmel), and Bill Fischer (Lane Tech) were just some Notre Dame heroes from long ago, while Tim Grunhard (St. Laurence), Chris Zorich (Chicago Vocational), and Pat Coogan (Marist) are more recent names to lead Notre Dame to glory.

Jan 2, 1989; Tempe, AZ, USA; FILE PHOTO; Notre Dame Irish defensive tackle Chris Zorich (50) on the field against the West Virginia Mountaineers during the 1989 National Championship Fiesta Bowl at Sun Devil Stadium. Notre Dame defeated West Virginia 34-21. | Malcolm Emmons-Imagn Images

Now, as Notre Dame tries to put the finishing touches on its 2027 recruiting class, it's looking to Chicago to take it from really good to potentially great.

Notre Dame Football's Recent Chicago Dry Spell

For as much history as there is in Chicago with Notre Dame, recent recruits have largely been big swings and misses by the Fighting Irish.

Christopher Burgess (Simeon) was a big win for Notre Dame in 2025 and is part of the reason to think the Fighting Irish defensive line is pointing up.

However, besides Pat Coogan (Marist) in 2021, Notre Dame hadn't had a *Chicago player sign a letter of intent since Nic Weishar (Marist) all the way back in 2014.

*-Actual Chicago school. Cole Kmet, for example, played at St. Viator in Arlington Heights, a Chicago suburb, but a good 25-plus miles from downtown Chicago.

Linebackers Steve Filer (Mt. Carmel) and Darius Fleming (St. Rita) were both part of the 2008 class, but from 2001 to 2007, only Corey Mays (Morgan Park), Dan Santucci (St. Patrick), Demetrius Jones (Morgan Park), and Robert Hughes (Hubbard) chose Notre Dame.

That momentum, which Burgess has helped change, appears to be getting a massive boost in 2027, though.

Notre Dame's Massive Return to Chicago in 2027 Cycle

Notre Dame has missed on huge Chicago prospects like Justin Scott (Brother Rice) in recent years, but this time around it's hitting things out of the park.

That starts in a big way with the only Chicago player currently committed in 2027, defensive tackle David Folorunsho (St. Patrick).

David Folorunsho, Defensive Tackle - St. Patrick

IRISH SPRING GREEN GREEN ☘️☘️☘️ https://t.co/JYuzFrWJC9

— David Folorunsho ‘27 🇳🇬 (@DavidFolorunsh0) May 16, 2026

Folorunsho is rated as a top 30 player nationally according to the 247Sports composite rankings, and is exactly the level of defensive tackle Notre Dame hasn't successfully landed for years.

He plays for none other than Tom Zbikowski, who starred at nearby suburban high school Buffalo Grove before becoming an All-American at Notre Dame. For what it's worth, Santucci now serves as the President at St. Patrick High School as well, so the connections are plentiful.

Two Big Fish Left to Catch from Chicago

Notre Dame seems to have done a fantastic job with its visitors this past weekend as a couple of Chicago products are now projected by recruiting experts to ultimately pick the Fighting Irish.

Brayden Parks (Brother Rice) sounds like he's still going to make his visit to Oregon this weekend, but projections for him to end up at Notre Dame have come in. He's a four-star prospect with a top 25 defensive lineman ranking who would help beef up any defensive front he joins.

Notre Dame also appears to be in a great spot with linebacker Roman Igewbuike (Mt. Carmel). Mt. Carmel is the standard when it comes to high school football in Illinois, having won 17 state championships, the most of any program in the state.

However, Notre Dame hasn't landed a recruit from Mt. Carmel since Filer back in 2008.

Nick Shepkowski's Quick Takeaway

For a long time I was of the belief that it didn't matter where players came from as long as they were talented.

While I still find that to be largely true, taking care of business in your own backyard just makes things easier overall.

Yes, Notre Dame will forever have to go to Florida, California, and Texas to pull elite talent, but when there is elite talent in Chicago, it creates less of a reliance on having to hit it as big everywhere, as you're hopefully hit it out of the park in your own backyard.