Notre Dame Takes Aim at Big-Time Texas Commitment

I don't know if there is a saying in the Notre Dame football offices of "ABC: Always Be 'Cruitin" but perhaps there should be.

If you're going to be on the Notre Dame football coaching staff, you're going to be big in recruiting. That was said by Marcus Freeman on his first official day on the job, and it has held true through four seasons, as Notre Dame is coming off its highest rated high school recruiting class in decades.

Newly hired Notre Dame defensive backs coach Aaron Henry is trying to live up to the ex. Henry, freshly hired away from Illinois, has started to make offers to different prospects in the 2027 recruiting cycle.

The latest of those is a big-time defensive back from Texas, but this one comes with a catch, as the prospect is already committed to Texas.

Karnell James, Jr. announced a scholarship offer from Notre Dame this week, despite being a Texas commitment since early December of 2025.

James is rated as a three-star prospect according to 247Sports and the 53rd overall cornerback in the class.

Blessed to receive an offer from the University of Notre Dame.#AGTG @AaronHenry7 @JourdanBlake_ @SWiltfong_ @GregBiggins @adamgorney @TheUCReport @BrandonHuffman @TomLoy247 @MikeRoach247 @jackson_dip @CoachKirkMartin @jeffries_jacob @CAT_TAKEOVER @EarlGill10 @Jalil_Johnson21… pic.twitter.com/pDqZvtJd5L
— 3 ⭐️ Greedy (Karnell) James Jr (@Greedyjames7) February 24, 2026

To those that get too caught up with player rankings, it's always a good reminder to think back to Benjamin Morrison. Morrison was one of the best cornerbacks Notre Dame has ever seen, eventually becoming a second round draft pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

He was rated as the nation's 37th overall cornerback in the 2022 recruiting class, though.

Does Notre Dame Have a Chance for Karnell James?

James has been a verbal commitment to Texas for nearly 15 months now, so it would appear it'll be difficult to get him to flip.

He lists over 20 offers from places like Florida, Iowa, Missouri, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and several others.

Whenever you hear the recruiting experts talk about figuring out where a recruit is going to go, they all say almost the exact same thing: Follow the visits.

James would appear to be a solid commitment to Texas at this point, as a quick search reveals no recent visits to anywhere besides Austin.

Can Notre Dame get him on campus? If Notre Dame can get James for a visit during the spring, then perhaps there is a chance to land his talents.

As of right now, Notre Dame has seven commitments in the 2027 recruiting cycle, with two of those from cornerbacks Xavier Hasan and Ace Alston. Even so, Notre Dame promotes competition between its players and certainly appears to seriously pursue more cornerbacks in the class.

I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for James to visit South Bend anytime soon, but if Notre Dame is able to get him on campus, then it'd scream that his Texas commitment isn't nearly as strong as it would appear to currently be.