Khary Adams’ first gameday visit to Notre Dame lined up with a seismic 16-14 upset loss by the Irish football team to MAC middleweight Northern Illinois back on Sept. 7.
It didn’t keep the Rivals250 four-star cornerback from coming back. Or from eventually finding a fit in South Bend, Ind.
On Friday, less than a week after wrapping up an official recruiting visit to Notre Dame, the Towson (Md.) Loyola Blakefield High standout fast-tracked his decision timeline and picked the Irish. Notre Dame overtook leader Penn State for the 6-foot-2, 190-pound track standout, who held 39 reported offers.
Clemson, Florida State, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Oregon, South Carolina and USC were among his other suitors.
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He becomes commitment No. 18 in a class that was rated No. 2 in the 2026 Rivals team rankings on Wednesday after offensive tackle Grayson McKeogh's commitment and moves back into that spot after Thursday surges by Texas A&M, Ohio State and Clemson. The Irish are tied at the moment with Texas A&M. Both have 2,258 points, but the Irish have a better star average, 3.94 to 3.78.
Adams is also the third defensive back to commit in the class — with a possible fourth DB, four-star safety Joey O’Brien, in the mix for the Irish with a Friday night decision date set (Instagram 7:15 ET).
Already committed are Tennessee cornerback Chaston Smith and Florida safety Ayden Pouncey, both four-star prospects. Should the Irish sweep all four, longtime recruiting analyst Tom Lemming earlier this week called it Notre Dame's best defensive backs class “in a very long time.”
Three-star safety Nick Reddish from North Carolina is also still in play and has set a decision date set for July 11.
Rivals ranks Adams as the No. 246 player overall in the 2026 class and the No. 19 cornerback, an assessment Lemming amended for his own rankings in Prep Football Report.
“I gave Khary Adams five stars myself,” he said. “He runs a 10.7[-second] 100, has long arms and is a very confident young man. Mature kid. His profile, across the board, is almost identical with O’Brien’s.”
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And another statement on the recruiting trail by Notre Dame defensive backs coach Mike Mickens, whose secondaries the past two seasons have helped Irish lead the nation in pass-efficiency defense.
Safety Xavier Watts, now an Atlanta Falcons rookie, was a second-time All-American in 2024 for the national runner-up Irish. Cornerback Leonard Moore was named the Freshman Defensive Player of the Year by the Football Writers Association of America.
Mickens stacks this elite cornerback class on top of the 2025 group of four-stars — Cree Thomas, Mark Zackery IV and Dallas Golden.
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