Loyola Blakefield Star Khary Adams Balances Present Greatness with His Future at Notre Dame

From Owings Mills roots to national stardom, the 2026 cornerback standout has become the complete package — a quiet worker, blazing athlete, and future Notre Dame playmaker

Loyola Blakefield's Khary Adams, who will head to the University of Notre Dame after his senior year with the Dons, is a superior all-around athlete and a two-way star on the football field. / Courtesy of the Adams Family

As the sun yawned during its morning rise on Friday, August 29, Khary Adams was up and moving in his Owings Mills, Maryland home. The Loyola Blakefield senior brushed his teeth, slipped on a slick beige sweatsuit, laced up a fresh pair of kicks and sat for a light breakfast of banana-laced Cheerios. 

Food consumed, he was off to the school’s picturesque Towson campus on the outskirts of Baltimore to meet his team for the start of a long day.

Over the previous 48 hours, he’d erected an invisible wall to ward off distractions,  solely focused on the Dons season opener against Scranton Prep. 

Gathered alongside teammates in the locker room while sliding on their uniforms sans helmet and pads, the collective mood was light and playful. As the chartered buses began eating up pavement to start the three-hour ride toward the Wyoming Valley of Northeastern Pennsylvania, Adams closed his penetrating, arresting hazel eyes. 

In a few months, the spindly, speedy 6-foot-2, 180-pound defensive back ranked among the nation’s top corner prospects will be heading to South Bend, Indiana to suit up for a Notre Dame Fighting Irish program that is fresh off an appearance in the 2025 National Championship game. 

But living in the present, on that bus ride, he embraced the moment and the Dons immediate task. While others joked, bumped music in their headphones or tapped away on cell phones, Adams nodded off and slept. Soundly.

Family Legacy of Excellence

The fact that Khary Adams has achieved stardom on the football field is not lost on anyone who believes in destiny.

On a sun-splashed afternoon in the Fall of 1994, Paul Adams was navigating his way through the crowded stands in Armstrong Stadium at halftime of a Hampton University football game. As the renowned “Marching Force” band was concluding another energy-driven performance that left the crowd buzzing, the upperclassman locked eyes with a stunning freshman from Virginia Beach and stopped dead in his tracks.

“I saw her and said, ‘Wow!’” said Paul. “She was beautiful and had this wonderful vibe. I shot my shot and asked her for her number. I thought maybe she gave it to me just to get rid of me.”

Some 30 years later, that aspiring, attractive young psychology major is still by his side. 

Cherita Adams’ father was among the first African-Americans to receive the prestigious Morehead Scholarship at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, where he later matriculated into their medical school. 

Khary Adams with his family, (from left) father Paul, sister Nyla and mother Cherita. / Courtesy of the Adams Family

“My parents grew up together in a small town, Edington, North Carolina, a community of sharecroppers in the Elizabeth City area,” said Cherita. “They both worked incredibly hard and my mom didn’t let anybody mess with her kids.”

Cherita was a dancer and honors student who loved the performing arts. She also ran track in high school and modeled in local fashion shows before pursuing her undergraduate studies at Hampton. 

Paul grew up in Dover, Delaware, the son of an Air Force communications specialist whose mom was a disciplinarian and homemaker as well. Their emphasis on academic excellence, like Cherita’s parents, was non-negotiable. He was also an athlete, playing football and running track prior to majoring in Building Construction and Technology at Hampton.

“I like how things go together in mechanical systems,” said Paul. “I studied accounting, finance and the business side, as well as the practical side of the construction business.”

The young couple eventually settled in Owings Mills to build a future and raise a family. 

Starring on Both Sides of the Ball

After a stop at the University of Scranton cafeteria, where Adams fueled up on a carbs and protein-filled lunch of chicken and pasta, Loyola Blakefield went through a pre-game walkthrough before heading over to Scranton Prep for some stretching, light drills and final preparations before their 6:00pm kickoff.

“I felt good,” said Adams. “It was the first game of my last high school season so I was excited to get going. On defense, I like to get challenged when there’s a really good player in front of me.”

Scranton Prep, conversely, wasn’t as excited to see him lined up at cornerback. They only threw one hitch pass in his direction all game. It fell incomplete.

“I’ve coached several excellent corners who went on to play major college football, but Khary is different,” said Loyola Blakefield head coach Richard Holzer. “With his height and arm length, he looks more like a safety or a wide receiver. But he has the footwork and quickness of an elite smaller guy. He’s aggressive to the ball and knows how to best utilize his combination of length and high-end speed.”

“He can hang free in cloud coverage and an opposing quarterback might think he has an open receiver,” Holzer continued. “But Kahry’s arms are so long, he strides so fast and has a great burst that makes it very difficult to have success throwing in his direction.”

Scranton Prep could keep the ball away from Adams while he played defense, but they had no such luck when he split out wide at receiver on offense. 

Up 21-6 early in the second quarter, he was flanked out left. At the snap, he sprinted eight yards before breaking toward the post. Despite being shadowed by the corner and safety, he blew past the coverage and hauled in sophomore quarterback Carlos Spencer’s 20-yard spiral in full stride. 

With the defenders giving chase as they helplessly stared at the shrinking numbers on the back of his jersey, he shifted gears and smoothly motored away, crossing the goal line untouched for a 54-yard touchdown.

“As soon as I made my break and cut toward the post, I knew I had them, despite the double-team,” said Adams.

On the very next drive, with 4:01 left before halftime, Loyola ran the same play. Adams snagged Spencer’s 28-yard throw in the end zone. The Dons eventually cruised to a 45-13 win.

With the first game of the season in the books, Adams rode back home to Maryland with his parents. Shortly after settling into the back of their silver Honda Accord, he dozed off for the remainder of the trip. 

Speed Born on the Track

When Khary was born, his parents took notice of three things. He was big. He was quiet. And he was very busy.

“He was always watching us, observing,” said Cherita. “He didn’t make much noise. When he was born he didn’t even cry, he just looked at the doctor like, ‘Wha’s up?’ He was always moving, always in motion. He didn’t sit still and started walking at seven months.”

Pretty soon the home’s interior layout became his own personal obstacle course. He was constantly scampering around and launching himself off the furniture. 

When Cherita ran a 5K at the Baltimore Women’s Classic, the event offered a playful sprint race for kids. She entered Khary, then four years old, and his older sister Nyla, who’s currently a junior at Hampton University majoring in Journalism with a double minor in Political Science and Leadership Studies. 

She lined her kids up on the spur of the moment as nothing more than a fun activity to keep them occupied.

“He dusted everybody,” said Cherita. “I was looking around like, ‘What? Did you see that?’”

Shortly thereafter, he joined the Owings Mills Track Club. By the time he was eight, he qualified for the Junior Olympics in Houston. 

A young Khary Adams was a phenom on the track, qualifying for the Junior Olympics at the age of eight years old. / Courtesy of the Adams Family

“When he was young, Khary was this ball of energy, he was all over the place,” said Michael Ray, the Owings Mills track coach who’s worked with him from day one. “Back then, just like he is today, he was even-keeled, real quiet and not super-excitable.” 

He established himself as one of the country’s best young triathletes, a youth event that incorporates the high jump, 400M dash and the shotput. 

“I didn’t like running track very much at first,” said Adams. “I just kept passing everybody. The cool part was making new friends from different places and traveling around the country.”

At the age of nine he was an All-American on the national track and field circuit and transitioned at 11 to compete in the pentathlon, which also incorporates the hurdles, a 1500M run and the long jump.

During his time with the Owings Mills Track Club, Khary Adams established himself as much more than fast runner. He became an all-around athlete who ran for distance and excelled in field events in the pentathlon. / Courtesy of the Adams Family

“You could tell that he had excellent athletic potential because he had the ability to excel across a bunch of different events,” said Ray. “That meant that he could be a great athlete once he decided to hone in on a specific discipline later on, whether it was football, tennis, lacrosse, or anything else. He just had superb all-around talent.”

That talent came shining through from the moment he donned his first set of pads in the Baltimore area Pop Warner and youth football leagues. But his high school destination was not going to be determined by athletic ability.

Attending Loyola Blakefield Was More Than an Athletic Decision for Adams

“Loyola Blakefield was not an athletic decision,” said Cherita, the Deputy Chief of Staff in the Dean’s Office at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “We were looking at where he was going to have the best opportunity to develop as a young man. He’s a curious kid and we were mindful of putting him in a strong academic environment with small class sizes. We wanted him to prepare for being successful as a college student.”

Prior to his entering high school, Cherita asked her son to write down his goals. Among them was to maintain a 3.0 GPA every year, make the junior varsity team as a ninth grader and have at least one D-I scholarship offer by the start of his senior season. 

He began surpassing those almost immediately. 

Adams made the varsity squad as a freshman, but Cherita and Paul didn’t foresee their son receiving over 40 scholarship offers from the likes of Notre Dame, Michigan, Penn State, Oregon, Clemson, Florida State, LSU, Miami and Oklahoma less than three years later. 

That realization came on an early spring afternoon during his sophomore year. 

The late winter weather was lingering that day, like the annoying inebriated uncle who refuses to leave the family cookout. At Johnny Unitas Stadium, while in the starting blocks for the 100M dash at the Towson Invitational track meet, Adams was wishing he was anywhere but there.

“It was so cold out there. I really didn’t even want to run that race,” Adams said.

But when he crossed the finish line in a blazing 10.7 seconds, the news instantly galloped across social media channels. 

Khary Adams, with his parents Paul and Cherita at Loyola track meet last spring, has blossomed as an athlete and student at Blakefield. / Courtesy of the Adams Family

“Khary was adamant that he didn’t want to run that 100M,” said Paul, who currently manages large-scale construction projects. “He had to be convinced, like ‘Just run it to see where you are.’” 

When he returned home after also running a scintillating 21.5 in the 200M, his phone was blowing up.

“A lot more college coaches started reaching out after that,” he said.

A Future Without Limits

This past Friday, September 5, Adams was up and moving early, donning his khaki slacks, white button-up shirt, royal blue and gold tie, navy blazer and Sperry boat shoes before heading off to school. 

After his morning African-American and Sports Literature classes, he relaxed and munched on a few slices of pepperoni pizza in the spacious student commons dining hall. When his afternoon Theology studies wrapped, he was off to the locker room to shed his school clothes and change into his football uniform before the hour-long bus ride to North Bethesda for a 7:00 pm matchup with Georgetown Prep. 

Unlike Scranton Prep the week prior, the Little Hoyas decided to test Adams. It was a decision they soon regretted. 

On Loyola Blakefield’s 45-yard line in the second quarter, Adams was lined up in man-to-man press coverage. At the snap, the Georgetown Prep receiver took off on a go route. Adams stayed with him stride for stride, turned to locate the ball and elevated to snag it at his own ten yard line. He proceeded to return it 40 yards. 

Loyola Blakefield went on to win, 20-7.

As a youngster, Khary Adams discovered track first, but his athletic future was forged when he began playing football. / Courtesy of the Adams Family

“Khary doesn’t say too much, he’s a soft-spoken guy and a quiet worker but he’s extremely competitive,” said Montre Gregory, his defensive back personal trainer. “He’s not a rah-rah guy, but he burns to win every drill, every matchup and he understands game situations, leverage and techniques. When that ball is in the air, he thinks it belongs to him.” 

“He’s so fast, he can make technical mistakes and recover when the receiver has separation,” said Ray. “He can close significant gaps with raw speed and his brain smarts. As you go up each level, the talent gets better and evens out. You just can’t freelance and succeed based solely on athleticism. The difference between average and excellent players in college depends on one’s dedication and commitment to the mental aspect, the details and the hunger, desire and willingness to study in the film room for hours.” 

As far as role models in the defensive secondary, Adams doesn’t need to look far to appreciate a rangy, multi-skilled defensive back that interned at Notre Dame before excelling on the game’s biggest stage. 

He also has some pretty lofty goals on his vision board before and after he graduates early to enroll in college in January. 

“The Ravens Kyle Hamilton is the player I watch and try to emulate,” said Adams. “He’s real smart, super versatile and impacts the game in many ways. I want to win a MIAA championship here at Loyola during my final high school season. And next year at Notre Dame, I want to be a freshman All-American on a team that competes for a national championship.”

At the highest levels of football, defensive back is among the most difficult positions from a mental and physical standpoint. It’s laden with failure as even the best give up crucial completions and touchdowns. 

“Playing DB is mentally challenging because it’s inevitable that you’re going to give up some stuff,” said Gregory. “The question is, how do you respond? Khary can turn that page with no problem and start the next play with a blank slate.” 

Between split-second reads while instinctually recognizing the timing of a quarterback’s drop, reading wide receiver splits, formations and tendencies, mastering subtle hand-to-hand combat techniques, being able to swiftly move backwards and sideways at the drop of a dime while seamlessly blending finesse with sporadic outbursts of violent physicality, a great corner’s tool bag is deep and heavy.

It’s like being that track athlete that can excel across a variety of disciplines.

“Khary’s the total package,” said Ray. “The sky’s the limit for him. With his talent, work ethic and focus, he’s going to do things in the days ahead that he hasn’t even begun to imagine yet.”