There was plenty of talent that arrived in South Bend from the 2026 Notre Dame football recruiting class, and a former 5-star showed out during the scrimmage portion of practice on Saturday afternoon.
Safety Joey O’Brien entered the program as the country’s No. 28 overall prospect in the 247Sports Composite Rankings, but came into the fall as a bit of an unknown. The 6-foot, 5-inch and 200-pounder enrolled early and participated in spring practice. O’Brien was getting some run during the Blue and Gold game, but unfortunately went down with an injury.
A broken leg kept him out of much of the preparation for the season, but on Saturday, he reintroduced himself to Irish Nation. O’Brien picked off a pass during an 11-on-11 portion of open practice,
showing great awareness, instincts and hands to make the play.
It very much looks like the injury was a temporary setback, as the former 5-star has the potential to see the field this fall in a loaded secondary.
Go, Joey! 🤩#GoIrish☘️ | @Joey_obrien6 pic.twitter.com/hSRG78NkxA
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) August 8, 2026
Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (Formerly Twitter), and like our page onFacebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.
Follow Mike on X: @MikeFChen
This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Notre Dame’s 5-star freshman makes huge play during Saturday scrimmage
