Notre Dame trending for Top-100 CB Mark Zackery
At the end of February, Indianapolis Ben Davis four-star cornerback Mark Zackery trimmed his list of top schools down to four. Cincinnati, Florida, Michigan and Notre Dame all made the cut for the rising prospect.
Of those four schools, one is trending heavily for Zackery’s pledge, according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM). Notre Dame offered the 6-foot, 155-pounder last May and has since been one of the frontrunners in his recruitment.
Fighting Irish insider Mike Singer logged a pick in the On3 RPM in favor of the in-state school landing Zackery back in August. On Saturday, Ohio State insider Alex Gleitman did the same. Now, ND has the 94% edge to add another elite blue-chipper to the fold in Marcus Freeman’s growing class.
“I’ve got to visit Notre Dame a lot in my recruiting process because I live in Indiana, so being able to be on campus a lot and talk to everybody on the staff and build great relationships has helped me throughout my process and thoughts about them,” Zackery told On3’s Hayes Fawcett upon naming his top four.
Zackery made multiple trips to South Bend in 2023 and has already visited once this year. He’s set to return this month and has also set his official visit date with the Irish for June 7-9. He is also scheduled to take OVs to Cincinnati, Florida and Michigan.
“I feel like just how my parents raised me (aligns with) what Notre Dame puts in their presentations,” Zackery told Blue and Gold in September. “The character you have to have. The man you have to be. You have to be on top of your schoolwork and get a great football program and staff around you that will treat you like a man. Show you how to be a great man and have the opportunity after football.”
On Monday’s update of the On300 Rankings, Zackery was a major riser, jumping from No. 219 overall all the way up to No. 76. He’s also the No. 10 CB in the On300 and is now also a top-100 recruit in the On3 Industry Ranking.
Notre Dame Class Breakdown
With 17 commitments, more prospects have pledged to the Fighting Irish than any other program. Notre Dame ranks No. 5 in the 2025 On3 Industry Team Recruiting Rankings.
The 17-man class consists of 10 blue-chip prospects, led by No. 5 quarterback Lucedale (Miss.) George County four-star Deuce Knight. Knight committed to the Irish in September.
“I hope they know they’re getting an elite competitor,” Knight told On3 when asked what Irish fans should expect of him. “Anything that I can do to win games, that’s what I’m going to do. They’re getting a guy who will come in and help everyone get better because I’m an elite competitor.
” If I’m going to compete hard, that’s going to make everyone around me compete hard. And I’m a great teammate. I’m going to support everyone around the program in any way I can.”
Winter Garden (Fla.) West Orange four-star safety Ivan Taylor and Wallingford (Conn.) Choate Rosemary Hall four-star offensive tackle Will Black are also top-100 commits. Chicago Simeon four-star EDGE Christopher Burgess, Notre Dame De La Baie Academy four-star tight end James Flanigan and Waukesha (Wis.) Catholic Memorial four-star offensive tackle Owen Strebig check in as top-200 recruits pledged to the Irish.