Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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48 OCT. 18, 2025 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY TYLER HORKA N otre Dame football is generally solely in the South Bend spot- light on Saturdays in the fall. On Oct. 4, though, Marcus Freeman's Fighting Irish shared it with Niele Ivey. The Notre Dame women's basketball coach picked up a surprise commitment from Rivals' No. 12 overall player in the 2026 class, Dallas Le- gion Prep Academy's Jacy Abii. She chose the Irish over other perennial powers Tennessee, Texas, LSU and UCLA. And, yes, it was genuinely a surprise commitment. Ivey had no idea about it until it happened. Abii traveled to South Bend for the Boise State fo o tba l l ga m e we e ke n d . N o t re D a m e b a s k e t b a l l general manager Pat Gar- rity called Ivey into his of- fice that Saturday morning for what she thought was a general work meeting. When she turned to grab a chair to sit down in, Abii was already sitting in it. "I just know what she saw must've been crazy and su- per unexpected," Abii told Blue & Gold Illustrated. What's expected, now, is a lot from Abii in a Notre Dame uniform. Abii is a two-time state champion in Texas as the star player for Frisco Lib- erty. In her most recent state title run as a sophomore, she averaged 20.5 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. She tore her ACL in the summer of 2024, though, forcing her to sit out her junior year. Since then, she transferred to Le- gion Prep ahead of her senior season. It doesn't matter what jersey Abii puts on. Her track record speaks for it- self. Before the knee injury, the Dallas Morning News put out the following headline in February 2024: "Frisco Lib- erty's Jacy Abii could be the best player to ever come out of the Dallas area." Yep. She's that good. "I think I'm going to come back with a lot better of a shot in general and then a bit more of a bag to get into my shot," Abii said. "And then a lot more skilled passing. Pretty much what I was doing before but just on a whole new level. I've been working on a lot, and I'm really excited to showcase it." ESPN published an article in July of this year comparing the top 2026 re- cruits to current stars in the collegiate game. The outlet's comp for Abii was Addy Brown of Iowa State. Brown, like Abii, is a 6-foot-2 wing with a versa- tile game. She averaged 15.2 points, 7.7 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game as a sophomore this past season. "Abii is quite valuable as an all-around forward who brings stat-stuffing effort to the floor nightly, along with a winning pedigree," ESPN's Shane Laflin wrote. "Both she and Brown can play a point forward role, desirable in today's game of position-less basketball, and both are legitimate three-point threats. Both can also call their own num- ber, or pick apart a defense by making their teammates better, and they allow their respective matchups to dic- tate their decision-making." Position-less basketball is the name of Ivey's game. She coaches a free-flowing style of play led by All-American and ACC Player of the Year Hannah Hidalgo, who will have one season to team up with Abii in 2026-27. It could be a season Ivey and Co. are building toward with who will be returning and who Notre Dame currently has committed in the class of 2026. Abii is Notre Dame's third commit of the cycle. She joins 6-3 forward Isabella Sangha from Pine Crest School in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Bella Ragone, a 6-2 forward from Mill Creek High School in Hoschton, Ga. Ragone is ranked the 24th overall player in the class according to Rivals. Sangha is 77th. The Irish are still looking for one or two more recruits to fill out their class, but so far, so good. Scratch that — so far, so great. Abii is an incred- ible get for Ivey. And Notre Dame is an incredible place for Abii to be. "One of the main things for me was perfect fit and the culture," she said. "Every school says they have culture. But Notre Dame was one of the ones that I saw fitting into my life. I live out a lot of their values already. "That was something I definitely want to make sure I got when I was choosing my school." ✦ Five-Star Wing Headlines 2026 Recruiting Class WOMEN'S B A S K E T B A L L Notre Dame received a commitment from five-star Dallas Legion Prep wing Jacy Abii — the No. 12 overall player in the class of 2026 according to Rivals — on Oct. 4. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS