Notre Dame Is Making A Run At Elite Offensive Lineman Jackson Cantwell

Elite 2026 offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell updates recruitment and early relationship with Notre Dame

Missouri offensive lineman Jackson Cantwell / Nathan Papes, USA TODAY Sports

The Notre Dame coaches are busy traveling the country during the evaluation period, checking in on some of the top recruits in the 2026 recruiting class and beyond. On Monday, Joe Rudolph was out to see 2026 Nixa (Mo.) High School offensive tackle Jackson Cantwell, who is an elite level player in his class.

When you think about offensive line development, Notre Dame is at the top of the list. No team has produced more high draft picks and the Irish, and no one has produced more All-Pros than Notre Dame over the last decade. Cantwell was appreciative of Rudolph making the trip, especially with a very early morning.

"The visit was pretty good,” Cantwell told Irish Breakdown. "Coach Rudolph came in to see me during a 6 AM lift. I have been glad to get to chop it up with him over the phone and get to talk ball and talk about Notre Dame.”

With communication limited on these trips, this was about Rudolph making his presence felt. He left with the coaches speaking very highly of him. Cantwell has been speaking to the Irish staff more recently, and has been impressed by the pitch.

"The conversations have all been good recently,” Cantwell explained. "We talked about a bunch of football stuff and mindset stuff about how to be and stay successful and how to keep getting better. We also discussed their success with getting offensive lineman to the draft from this past year.

"Notre Dame has a great reputation as a football program and school,” he continued. "As an offensive lineman, they are definitely attractive. They do great development up front.”

Everything on the service sounds great. Notre Dame is putting in a lot of effort. They also have a really easy sell to offensive lineman on the board. The problem is, Cantwell has never been on campus. Until he does, it is a bit of a pipeline. The Irish staff knows that and are pushing hard for the Missouri native to make the trip.

"There’s nothing cemented right now but I definitely want to get up to South Bend,” Cantwell said. "It’s a place I want to see. We are hoping for something in the future.”

Cantwell is already considered an elite prospect in the 2026 recruiting class. Rivals has him currently rated as a five-star recruit, including sitting as the No. 2 overall player in the class. 247Sports also has him pegged as the No. 4 overall player and No. 2 offensive tackle in 2026.

It should be no surprise that Cantwell already boasts an incredible offer list. Some do the top programs who have already offered him include the Fighting Irish, Georgia, Alabama, Michigan, USC, Oklahoma, Miami, Florida State, Oregon, Ohio State, Tennessee, Nebraska, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Penn State, Auburn, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan State, TCU, Arkansas, Kansas State, Iowa State, Kansas and Illinois.

The 6-7, 300-pound offensive tackle was a huge reason for Nixa finishing with a 11-1 record this past season. As an offense, they averaged 264.2 rushing yards per game while averaging 7.6 yards per carry and scoring 46 touchdowns on the ground. As a unit, they averaged 37.1 points per game in 2023.

Cantwell is also an outstanding thrower on the track and field team for Nixa. As a freshman, he was a Missouri Class 5 champion in the shot put with a personal best throw of 64'3.75". He bested that number as a sophomore with a throw of 72’2 ¾”. Cantwell is also a star in the discus, including a personal best toss of 205 4.5”. That raw power is very easy to see on film.

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