Notre Dame football didn’t have to wait for Christmas to receive presents.

The first came Monday when former Virginia wide receiver Malachi Fields committed to complete a graduate transfer to Notre Dame ahead of the 2025 season. The second present came Tuesday morning on Christmas Eve when 2026 four-star offensive lineman Ben Nichols announced his verbal commitment to the Irish.

Nichols, a 6-foot-5, 320-pound junior at Davison (Mich.) High, picked Notre Dame among fellow finalists Wisconsin, Penn State and Tennessee. Nichols also had offers from the likes of Ohio State, Michigan State, Alabama, Florida State and Iowa.

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Notre Dame offered Nichols in March on St. Patrick’s Day as part of the program’s Pot of Gold Day. Nichols had already visited Notre Dame twice at that point. He returned three more times since then with his most recent visit coming for ND’s home loss to Northern Illinois on Sept. 7.

So not only did the NIU loss motivate a Notre Dame team on a path to the College Football Playoff, it also helped produce a commitment from Nichols.

Nichols became the second lineman to commit to offensive line coach Joe Rudolph in Notre Dame’s 2026 class. Sullivan Garvin, a recently minted four-star recruit from Allegan, Mich., committed to the Irish earlier this month. Rivals ranks Garvin as the No. 39 offensive tackle in the class. Nichols is more highly regarded. Rivals ranks Nichols as the No. 27 offensive tackle and No. 242 overall in the 2026 class.

“Nichols is a mauler along the offensive line that offers the Irish some real versatility,” said Rivals national recruiting analyst Greg Smith. “He’s playing tackle for his team now, but I could easily see him kicking inside to guard and being more effective there. One of the reasons I feel that way is because he pulled quite a bit from his tackle spot and was very good at it during the game of his I saw in person back in August. Nichols is a physical player that takes pride in having a mean streak on the field. He’ll fit in perfectly in the Irish’s offensive line room.”

The addition of Nichols gives Notre Dame six verbal commitments in the 2026 class. He’s the fifth four-star recruit in a class that jumped LSU and Auburn to No. 7 in the country, per Rivals, following Nichols’ commitment. Notre Dame is behind a pair of programs with six recruits in their classes as well: No. 5 Tennessee and No. 6 Florida State. The top four schools — No. 1 Oregon (10 commits), No. 2 Texas A&M (9), No. 3 USC (7) and No. 4 Penn State (8) — all have more commitments.

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