National Signing Day: Five-star TE Ian Premer signs with Notre Dame football

Rivals’ No. 1 tight end prospect in the 2026 recruiting cycle has put pen to paper with the Fighting Irish. On Wednesday, the Notre Dame football communications team announced the official signing of Great Bend (Kan.) High senior Ian Premer.

The 6-5, 225-pound Premer is also the No. 27 overall player nationally and the No. 1 recruit in Kansas in the class, according to Rivals. He gave Notre Dame his verbal commitment June 26, about five days after his one allotted Irish official visit. Premer also officially visited Kansas, Iowa State and Kansas State last June.

According to the Rivals Industry Ranking — a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all three primary recruiting media services — Premer is a five-star prospect who ranks as the No. 28 overall player in the class.

Before he pledged to the Irish, Premer had offers from 28 Power Four schools. Oregon, Miami, Michigan, USC, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Penn State and Tennessee are among the schools that offered. Notre Dame did on Feb. 1, less than two weeks after playing in the national championship game. The Irish’s 2024 campaign played a role in his decision.

“On the football side, with their national championship run last year and this class so far is speaking for itself with how impressive it is,” Premer told Blue & Gold recruiting insider Mike Singer last June. “Going forward, Notre Dame is going to continue to be really good. You combine the football side with the academics and you realize the type of special place it is.”

Premer first unofficially visited Notre Dame on March 21. The Irish aimed to get him back on campus for their major official visit weekend June 13. However, he chose to go to Iowa State instead, returning to South Bend later in the week. That ended up working in his favor. Premer was the only 2026 class target on campus and received all the attention from the Irish staff — and it was well warranted.

He had one of the best senior seasons of any Notre Dame pledge, impacting the game in multiple facets. As a receiver, he had 40 catches for 734 yards (18.4 yards per catch) and 14 touchdowns during his 12-game senior season. He was also a force in the run game with 620 yards and 14 scores.

Premer played defense and returned punts, too. On defense, he had 68 tackles (35 solo), 5 stops for loss, 1 sack, 6 interceptions — 2 returned for touchdowns — 1 fumble recovery, 1 forced fumble and 1 blocked field goal. In the return game, he took 11 punts for 103 yards.

Premer is one of three recruits who will enroll in the summer, joining offensive linemen Ben Nichols and Gregory Patrick. The rest of the class will enroll early.