Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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34 SUMMER 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY MIKE SINGER The Fighting Irish pulled off a ma- jor recruiting triumph May 1 when Vero Beach (Fla.) High class of 2027 quar- terback Wonderful "Champ" Monds IV announced his commitment to Notre Dame. The four-star signal-caller visited campus during the weekend of April 18, his first trip to South Bend since the summer of 2025. The visit went so well that it catapulted the Irish to the top of his recruitment, leading to his public commitment. "Notre Dame has everything you can think of when it comes to academics, people on the coaching staff and over- all. It's the best fit for me," Monds said about his choice on the Pat McAfee Show. "My parents and I sat down, and it was one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make. We felt like this would be best for me. "Coach [Marcus] Freeman is super down to earth. He's such a humble guy. He was telling me about how I'd fit in their program. He's a great guy and coach. I can't wait to see what they do this season." Florida State and Ohio State were the two other teams largely viewed as the Irish's top competition. Miami, Geor- gia, Oregon, Michigan and Alabama also were among the 6-2½, 220-pounder's offers. "The academics, how the program is run and Marcus Freeman is a great coach," Monds previously said when asked what interests him in the Irish. "I like their coaching staff with Coach [and offensive coordinator Mike] Den- brock and [quarterback] Coach [Gino] Guidugli. Those are things I really love about that program." Notre Dame initially earned a pledge last summer from Kennesaw (Ga.) North Cobb's Teddy Jarrard and needed a replacement in the 2027 class after he reclassified to 2026 in December. The following month, the staff of- fered Monds, and in February, Guidugli and Co. added Sarasota (Fla.) Cardi- nal Mooney's Davin Davidson and Salt Lake City West's Kamden Lopati to the board, but they committed to Florida and Michigan, respectively. The Irish got the guy they offered first in their second go-round of 2027 quar- terback recruiting. Monds was originally part of the 2028 class but reclassified to 2027 in the win- ter. But at the end of last summer, Rivals ranked him as the No. 2 overall player in the 2028 class. However, his reclas- sification significantly impacted his ranking. Rivals currently lists him as the No. 17 quarterback and No. 215 overall player nationally in the 2027 cycle. Though he appeared in only four games last season, Monds was effective. He completed 45 of 63 passes for 691 yards and recorded 8 total touchdowns without throwing an interception. He missed nine games early in the season after suffering an ankle injury in Week 1, then sustained a left shoul- der injury to his non-throwing arm that sidelined him for two playoff games. In 2024 as a sophomore, Monds completed 181 of 268 passes for 2,234 yards with 23 touchdowns and 5 inter- ceptions. He also ran 142 times for 502 yards and 9 scores and was named the TCPalm Offensive Player of the Year. "Champ is the total package — he's big, strong, can rip the ball, is athletic, and he's the very best listener I've ever been around, adult or kid," Vero Beach head coach Lenny Jankowski said. "He's just a great listener. Champ is a big- time student of the game. He's just a special kid." Monds comes from quite an athletic family — his grandfather, Wonderful Monds Jr., was a first-team All-Amer- ican defensive back for the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the mid-1970s before being selected in the fourth round of the 1976 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He had four sons, all of whom played collegiate or professional athlet- ics, including Mario Monds, who played for the Cincinnati Bengals and Miami Dolphins. His uncles include Wonderful Monds II, who played for Florida Inter- national, and Devin Monds, who was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2001. His father, also named Wonderful, played professional baseball in the At- lanta Braves organization. "I have a lot of pride," Monds IV previously told Rivals' Steve Wiltfong regarding his family's athletic lineage. "We've just always been great competi- tors. I feel like growing up I had to be a great competitor, and now that's what I'm going to keep doing. "The main thing every single one of them told me is to stay humble. That's the main thing. When you start getting too big-headed you can drop. You just have to keep working." ✦ COMMITMENT PROFILE CHAMP MONDS Notre Dame Lands Pledge From A Quarterback Who Is A 'Special Kid' Monds, who is Rivals' No. 17 quarterback and No. 215 overall player nationally in the 2027 cycle, committed to Notre Dame over Florida State and Ohio State. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS FILM ANALYSIS "Champ Monds has a lot of physical tools and is a high-upside get for Notre Dame. Given his talent, he could buck the trend of the challenge we've seen with quarterbacks who reclassify. It's a bet that could pay off for Notre Dame, but we'll have a lot better sense of that coming out of next season. "When you look at the quarterbacks Notre Dame is bringing in, they are landing guys who have good size, move well and can really throw the ball. They're upgrading the DNA in the quarterback room. We like the tools Champ Monds is adding to Notre Dame's quarterback room." — Rivals director of scouting and rankings Charles Power