The defensive line resurgence in Notre Dame’s 2026 recruiting class added an interior presence Saturday.
That’s when four-star defensive tackle Tiki Hola announced his pledge to the Irish. The 6-foot-3, 270-pound junior at Bastrop (Texas) High picked the Irish over SMU and USC.
Hola set his commitment date in late March before he actually made a decision. Inside ND Sports sources indicated earlier this week that Hola had not yet shared his decision with the coaching staffs he was choosing between. Notre Dame and SMU were viewed as the true finalists after USC picked up four defensive tackle commitments.
SUBSCRIBE TO INSIDE ND SPORTS TO STAY IN THE KNOW ON NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS
More Content
► Spiegelman: Notre Dame lands a commitment four-star DL Tiki Hola
► TE James Flanigan remains on track for an early opportunity at Notre Dame
► Notre Dame among top schools for 2027 Rivals250 DB Jailen Hill
► 2026 four-star RB Jonaz Walton and Notre Dame target sets commitment date
► Elite 2027 TE Brock Williams shows patience with recruiting process
Though Notre Dame and SMU isn’t a typical recruiting battle, the Mustangs are asserting themselves as an ambitious program following an appearance as the No. 11 seed in last season’s College Football Playoff. The Irish made it further in the playoff, which ended with a 34-23 loss to Ohio State in the national championship game, than SMU, and they picked up another recruiting victory nearly four months after last season ended.
"Up to these last two visits, I had no idea," Hola told Rivals national recruiting analyst Sam Spiegelman. Both teams had been talking to me for a while and I knew was valuable to them," Hola started. "Notre Dame has done a great job recruiting me. Coach [Marcus] Freeman and what they're doing with the program ... they're doing a really good job."
Notre Dame’s class of 15 verbal commitments, which consists of 14 four-star recruits and one three-star recruits, continues to be ranked by Rivals as second-best in the country behind No. 1 USC (26 commits). Notre Dame’s average star rating of 3.93 is fourth-best among schools with at least 10 commitments behind LSU’s 4.2 (10 commits), Ohio State’s 4.08 (12 commits) and Texas A&M’s 4 (11 commits).
Rivals ranks Hola as the No. 16 defensive tackle and No. 214 overall in the 2026 class. Hola was credited with 102 tackles, with 10 tackles for loss, in 12 games last season at Bastrop.
“Tiki Hola fits the mold of an athletic, bendy, versatile defensive lineman,” Spiegelman said. “He’s capable of lining up inside as a 3, but also shifting out to the 4- or 5-techniques. He’s explosive off the line, super bendy. He has great arms and a powerful upper body.
“Much of his work as a pass rusher is done on the interior. He shoots gaps extremely quickly. He plays low to the ground. He’s also able to set the edge in the run game — a key attribute in his skill set. He is so good at this being able to play off the edge or inside. That versatility is essential.
“He’s a spark plug behind the line of scrimmage because of that pressure and penetration he’s able to consistently get. We love the upside as a potential pass rusher that can provide some juice in multiple spots from the defensive front.”
CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO INSIDE ND SPORTS ON YOUTUBE
Hola made four recruiting visits to Notre Dame before making his college decision. He attended Notre Dame’s 45-7 win over Wake Forest during the 2023 season. He returned in March 2024 for a spring practice, and followed that with visits earlier this year for a January junior day and the Blue-Gold Game in April.
Notre Dame sent defensive line coach Al Washington, linebackers coach Max Bullough and director of recruiting Carter Auman on an in-home visit with Hola in December. Washington and defensive analyst Nick Sebastian returned earlier this week. Notre Dame director of recruiting advancement Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa also connected with Hola during his spring game visit.
The Irish withstood a big push from SMU after it hired this spring senior player personnel analyst Jake Langi, who has a long history with Hola. Hola made an unofficial visit to SMU in April and returned for an official visit last weekend.
"Coach Sebastian and coach Washington have been recruiting me for the last few years," Hola said. "They've always made me feel like it's home. I'm really comfortable there and in that environment. The fan base and the teammates over there made me feel welcomed and they made me feel valuable."
Hola joins Rivals250 edge defenders Rodney Dunham and Ebenezer Ewetade as recruited defensive linemen in Notre Dame’s 2026 class. No other class in the country has a pair of edge defender ranked by Rivals as high as Dunham (No. 11 EDGE, No. 106 overall) and Ewetade (No. 14 EDGE, No. 139 overall).
The Irish also have a commitment from four-star edge defender Ja’Kobe Clapper, but Notre Dame recruited him as a linebacker.
The addition of Hola marks the start of needed improvement on the interior defensive line in Notre Dame’s class. The Irish will continue to try to add at least one more defensive tackle with several candidates showing interest: Elijah Golden, Noah Clark, Khary Wilder and Damari Simeon.
The Irish have also offered a few notable defensive tackle recruits in the last couple months: Marcus Almada, David Schwerzel, Alister Vallejo and Tavian Branch.
---------------------------------------------------------------
• Talk with Notre Dame fans on The Insider Lounge.
• Subscribe to the Inside ND Sports podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, SoundCloud, Podbean or Pocket Casts.
• Subscribe to the Inside ND Sports channel on YouTube.
• Follow us on Twitter: @insideNDsports, @EHansenND and @TJamesND.
• Like us on Facebook: Inside ND Sports
• Follow us on Instagram: @insideNDsports
