BY JEREMY GOODE

WYNDMOOR, PA-- The University of Notre Dame has the second-best recruiting class in football for the class of 2026.

It might have just moved up to one.

Joey O’Brien, a five-star safety and wide receiver at La Salle College High School, announced his commitment to the university in South Bend, Indiana in his high school gymnasium, on Fri., June 20 at 7:30 p.m.

The rising senior was joined on stage by his mother, father and two sisters, and by another sister on ZOOM.

O’Brien announced his decision in front of hundreds of friends and family members. He chose the Fighting Irish over Oregon, Clemson, and Penn State.

“You want to go to a place that you see develops people, and I feel like they do that,” O’Brien said. “Especially with Coach Mickens (the Notre Dame defensive backs coach), he developed Sauce (Ahmed Gardner), Xavier Watts, Kyle Hamilton… he did all of them.”

Given Mike Mickens’ track record, O’Brien wants to be next.

O’Brien brings an interesting profile to Notre Dame. You do not see many 6’5 safeties in the defensive backfield. Quite frankly, you do not see many 6’5 wide receivers either.

Based on his abilities and height, coaches categorized O’Brien’s game as unique.

Unicorn-like, as he has been told. 

Those traits have helped propel O’Brien into the list of the most prestigious high school football players in the country. According to 247 Sports, he is the fourth best safety in the country, and the 30th best player overall.

While his primary position is safety, the rising senior is also dangerous on the offensive side of the ball. His game goes far beyond the safety position. He caught 68 passes for over 1,000 yards and 12 touchdowns last season for the Explorers.

If you speak to anyone who knew O’Brien, you learn that he is more than just an athlete. Consistent comments throughout the evening from Gordon and La Salle athletic administrator Bob Zanneo described O’Brien as an even better person than a football player.

For being the number one player in Pennsylvania and the 30th best high school player in the country, that is saying something.

“He’s a very humble kid,” Zanneo said. “You would never know walking around the hallways he’s a five-star superstar. He’s integrated in the school community. He’s a people person and always going out of his way to be involved in the La Salle community.”

For O’Brien, his recruitment has been a long process. He had nearly 30 offers from some of the top football programs in the country.

Along with his top-tier strengths in football, O’Brien is a multi-sport athlete, also dominating on the hardwood for La Salle’s basketball team. In the classroom,  he has earned a 3.8 GPA.

It was a lot for O’Brien. At first, he was answering every call, text, going everywhere he was told. He learned through the process that he can say “no” more often. He learned how to say no to people.

Lesson learned. With the spotlight on O’Brien at such a young age, the realization now that he can dictate his own decisions and not try to please others all the time could help him in the long run as he continues to develop into an even more high-end athlete at Notre Dame.

Even during the balancing act of being a full-time student athlete while interacting with college programs and traveling throughout the country to meet with many schools, O’Brien found the fun during his recruitment process.

When asked what he enjoyed the most, he recalled meeting different people and building connections.

“That’s what you have to do and want to do in the world, just meet a lot of people,” O’Brien said. “That’s what I did at each stage, from the east coast to the west coast, I was just meeting people, and that was cool.”

La Salle is no stranger to graduating football players to the highest level of college competition. Every year, they send several players to Division I schools as well as Division II and III.

Additionally, the school has seen several alums play professionally in the NFL, including current players Zaire Franklin with the Indianapolis Colts, Jimmy Morrissey with the New York Giants, and most recently Abdul Carter, who was drafted third overall by the Giants in the 2025 NFL Draft.

O’Brien looks to continue the trend. In the meantime, his story is another check mark for the historical football program La Salle has established.

“From a football perspective, we hope this helps to continue to attract potential student athletes by showcasing our footprint on what we are doing out there nationally,” Zanneo said.

“You have to stay hungry,” O’Brien said. “You can’t keep doing the same thing. You have to get better every day and keep staying consistent.”