The Georgia Bulldogs aren’t just topping off their already stout 2025 football recruiting class. They’re going after 2026 talent, including one heavily coveted by Notre Dame.
The Bulldogs offered four-star 2026 prospect Joey O’Brien, per On3.com’s Chad Simmons on Thursday. The offer fires off the signal that head coach Kirby Smart and his staff are trying to sway the 6-foot-4 wide receiver/defensive back from the Fighting Irish.
O’Brien holds an 88.2% chance of committing to Notre Dame per On3.com’s recruiting prediction machine. Even 247Sports lists the La Salle College Prep two-way star “warm” on the Fighting Irish alongside Michigan and Penn State. Tom Loy of 247Sports even handed the Fighting Irish a 100% crystal ball prediction to land the WR/DB. O’Brien additionally checks in as the state of Pennsylvania’s No. 1 rated prospect for his class by 247Sports.
O’Brien currently has La Salle sitting at 10-0 overall. The Explorers rank No. 1 in the state per MaxPreps. O’Brien is already the most coveted ’26 prospect on his team with 20 reported offers.
The O’Brien offer continues Georgia football‘s aggressive recruiting blitz early in November. The Bulldogs learned Wednesday four-star 2025 wide receiver C.J. Wiley is on board. Wiley is another 6-foot-4 wideout but a local commit from Milton, Georgia. Four-star Safety Rasean Dinkins of Warner Robins also verbally pledged to the Bulldogs in November.
As Georgia pursues high-profile recruits like O’Brien, the No. 2 ranked Bulldogs are juggling their pursuit of a College Football Playoff spot as the No. 3 ranked team there. They have a marquee contest Saturday against Ole Miss to continue their playoff quest. The Bulldogs are 2.5-point favorites to top the Rebels.
Perhaps Saturday’s game can win over O’Brien. Or even ramp up the early push for more ’26 talent on Georgia’s side.
How Georgia’s 2026 class currently looks
Smart and his staff have Georgia ranked No. 3 nationally for 2025 recruiting classes. But how is their ’26 class looking early on?
Georgia sits much lower at the moment. The Bulldogs rank No. 12 by 247Sports for the next recruiting cycle. Texas A&M stands as the current No. 1 recruiting class and are one of seven Southeastern Conference teams ranked ahead of the Bulldogs.
No need to believe the sky is already falling for the 2026 efforts at Georgia. The Bulldogs hold three hard commits for ’26.
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They recently scored a huge West Coast recruiting win to spark their early run. Four-star wide receiver Vance Spafford of Mission Viejo verbally committed early to Georgia on Nov. 5. Spafford helped spearhead a state title run in 2023. The 2024 Diablos from Orange County rank fourth among California high school teams per MaxPreps.
Cornerback Dominick Kelly of IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida ranks as the highest-rated defensive member for the next Georgia class. The fellow four-star pledged early to the Bulldogs back on July 29. Three-star CB Jontavius Wyman, out of nearby Jonesboro, is the third verbal commit.
Georgia’s ’26 class features a solid trio of two four-stars and one in-state talent. O’Brien, though, has the potential to emerge as their highest-ranked prospect if the Bulldogs beat out heavy favorite Notre Dame for his services.
O’Brien would mark a rare Keystone State victory for Georgia too. The Bulldogs have no Pennsylvania prospects committed at the moment. Their last Pennsylvania signing was WR Zeed Haynes out of North Penn High in Lansdale, who was a 2023 addition. Haynes has since transferred to Syracuse for 2024.