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Four-star QB Champ Monds goes in depth on Notre Dame commitment

Singer headshotby: Mike Singer05/05/26MikeTSinger

Vero Beach (Fla.) High quarterback Champ Monds was privately committed to Notre Dame for a couple of weeks before he was able to appear on the Pat McAfee Show and let the nation know where he’d be continuing his career as a student-athlete.

The four-star class of 2027 prospect is relieved that he’s on the Irish commit list and has the recruiting process behind him.

“It feels great,” Monds told Blue & Gold. “It was hard to hold all of that in. It’s exciting to finally know where you’re going to be. It was great to announce it live on the Pat McAfee Show.

“It was surreal. I see him all the time on College GameDay, and it was wild seeing myself on the TV screen when I watched it back at home.”

Monds visited Notre Dame for the first time in June 2025 back when he was still a 2028 prospect. At the end of December, he announced that he’d be reclassifying to the 2027 class, and a few weeks later, Notre Dame’s Gino Guidugli and Mike Denbrock offered him a scholarship and made him a priority target.

The 6-3, 230-pounder returned to campus on April 18, 2026, and Monds admitted that going into the trip, he didn’t plan on privately committing during it.

“When we went up there, it felt like home — from the people to the environment to the football practice,” Monds added. “Everything was perfect. We ended up making the decision to commit and went from there.”

What made it perfect?

“Watching the practice, seeing how comfortable CJ Carr was and how he ran the offense,” Monds answered. “I saw myself fitting in and running that offense like he does. Also, our talks with Coach Gino, Coach Denbrock and Coach [Marcus] Freeman were all great. That’s what led to the decision.”

Monds goes in-depth on Irish commitment

He was aware that Notre Dame was going to bring in another quarterback prospect on the Tuesday after his visit, giving him a couple of days to mull things over. Blue & Gold’s read was that if Monds didn’t commit, then Peter Bourque would likely jump on the spot when he visited.

He didn’t feel pressure to commit. He was eager to do it with how well his visit went.

“We just really loved the spot,” he explained. “If they didn’t get me to commit, then they’d have to recruit other guys. I knew that was going to be the case with them and any other school. I’m just blessed to be in the position I am now.”

Before Monds left South Bend on April 19, he informed the Irish staff of his commitment.

“They were super pumped up,” he said. “I think they were kind of shocked and super excited.”

Notre Dame has four commitments from the Sunshine State with each of them hailing from the southern part of Florida. It’s an area that the Irish have struggled to land prospects from in recent years, but the Irish are on a heater with their “Florida Dame” push.

But still, a high school prospect has to be wired differently to bypass all of the in-state and go all way up to South Bend, Indiana and “choose hard.”

“It’s definitely hard to move that far away from home, but I need to be the best I can be to get to the next level,” Monds said. “We felt that it was Notre Dame. We were going to make the travel to any school, no matter where it was. It ended up being Notre Dame.”

Monds recently connected with Jayden Daniels, who was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft after winning a Heisman at LSU under then-Tigers’ offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock. He was able to talk with Daniels about his experience under Denbrock and more.

“Jayden Daniels is a guy I’ve always watched,” Monds noted. “I watched his LSU highlights all the time. It was a great experience to pick his brain about what he thought — not only about Coach Denbrock — but about being a better person and quarterback in general.”

Monds, who ranks as the No. 215 player and No. 17 quarterback nationally per Rivals, thinks the world of the Irish coaching staff.

“Coach Gino and I have had a great relationship since the end of my freshman year,” Monds said. “He’s always been a cool guy. When I reclassed up, they offered me, and I got to talk to him and Coach Denbrock when they came to see me in January. The relationship skyrocketed from there.

“Those guys are super down to earth, including Coach Freeman. We love how calm and normal they are; they don’t act like they’re any bigger than you. Having that relationship with those coaches helped my parents send me to that school.”

A prospect graduating a semester early and enrolling in college in January is impressive, while a full reclassification a year up is next level. But doing both, as Monds is, is unheard of.

He’s essentially skipping 1.5 years of high school, and he doesn’t have to play catch-up with how far ahead he is as a student.

A big part of why Monds picked the Irish is his belief that the staff will help him reach his dream of playing in the NFL, and he places great importance on the Notre Dame education as well.

“We know that you can go anywhere in the world with a degree from Notre Dame,” Monds said. “That degree holds a lot of weight. Academics played a big role. You’re not going to play football forever and have to have a life after that. That also went into the decision to commit.”

Ready to recruit for the Irish

After a 2025 season in which he dealt with multiple injuries, Monds is back to 100 percent and focused on his team’s spring practices in May to prepare for a state title run this fall. That will be Monds’ focus, along with staying rock solid with his Notre Dame pledge and recruiting for the Irish.

“I don’t want to flip. I’m not looking to flip,” he said. “I wouldn’t have committed if I felt like there’d be another school in the picture. My decision is final.

“I’ve been recruiting, and there are some guys from Florida who have Notre Dame in their top schools. I’ll be pushing for them. I’m going to have a big part in this recruiting class, especially since I play quarterback. I’ll be working on it.”

He’s familiar with Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas elite wide receiver and Notre Dame legacy Julius Jones Jr., a crucial target for the Irish in the 2027 class.

“Yeah we’re pretty cool, and I’ve been talking with him,” Monds added. “I’ve been pushing to try to get him to commit. I’d love to have him in the class.”