Five-star EDGE leans toward Marcus Freeman's Notre Dame with scheduled June visit

Five-star edge rusher Rodney Dunham has narrowed his recruitment to five finalists, and Marcus Freeman's Notre Dame made the cut, alongside South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and Duke. The Myers Park High School (North Carolina) standout previously visited South Bend for last spring’s Blue-Gold Game and has now scheduled an official visit to the Irish for June 14.

At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, Dunham is an explosive pass rusher with an elite blend of athleticism, functional movement and strength at the point of attack. His broad shoulders, long arms and physicality suggest huge upside at the next level.

Dunham is the No. 19 recruit in the nation and the No. 3 edge rusher in the 2026 class, according to the On3 Industry Rankings. Myers Park coach Chris James predicts he will eventually reach 240 to 245 pounds while maintaining his speed.

“A nice, quiet, respectful kid turns into the big-time football player, physical guy," James told Irish Sports Daily. "He is the type who leads more so by example, he's going to give the extra reps in the weight room, he's going to do what he's supposed to do, and then he's going to do even more than that."

Dunham has also spent much of his life playing baseball, serving as a pitcher. Besides Notre Dame, his upcoming official visits include Georgia on April 12, South Carolina on May 30, Duke on June 6 and Tennessee on June 20.

Rodney Dunham remains in continuous connection with Notre Dame coaching staff

Marcus Freeman has always been high on Rodney Dunham and wasted no time visiting him shortly after the national championship game. Along with Freeman, Dunham has maintained consistent communication with defensive line coach Al Washington and assistant coach Nick Sebastian.

“It is normally just normal conversation,” Dunhan told Irish Sports Daily last month. “I talk to Coach Sebastian a lot. When the conference championships were happening, we were talking about those games, what was going on, and talking about their games."

With the release of his top five schools, Dunham moved one step closer to his commitment, which he hopes to finalize before his senior season begins. As a five-star recruit, his recruitment is highly competitive, with top programs doing everything possible to land him.

If Rodney Dunham commits to Notre Dame, he will become the first edge rusher in the 2026 class. The Irish have seven committed players in the cycle, ranking No. 11 in the nation.