Must-get recruiting targets for each ACC program
Commitments have started to pick up steam in the 2026 cycle and as a result, programs are getting a better idea of which targets are the most important moving into the spring portion of the cycle.
Here are the must-get targets for each ACC program in the 2026 class.
ACC RECRUITING RANKINGS: 2025 | 2026
THIS SERIES: Must-get recruiting targets for each Big Ten team | Must-get SEC targets
BOSTON COLLEGE
The Eagles have yet to snag a blue-chip recruit in the 2026 class, despite tying Syracuse for the largest commitment group to date with nine already on board. Gooden checks that box, would satisfy Bill O’Brien‘s desire to get better up front and present as a true recruiting win given how the No. 1 recruit in the state of Massachusetts is originally from Canada without ties to any contending program.
CAL
The offensive lineman is a Bay Area star with plenty of familiarity with the Bears, fresh off of a Feb. 1 return trip, where his older brother John also just signed last cycle. The offensive front is a major need for the program in the 2026 cycle, too, so winning out for a national recruit in your own backyard could be viewed as a turning point for Cal as it looks to build out a class off to a slow start.
Oregon, Washington, UCLA, Tennessee and many others are among the competition for Tofi.
CLEMSON
Clemson built its title rosters through the state of Georgia and certainly along the defensive line, and Perry-Wright can check both boxes in the 2026 cycle. Throw in family ties to CU, with his cousin being Clemson great Grady Jarrett, and early prioritization for Dabo Swinney and this looks like one that would sting to a high degree should another program win out.
DUKE
A top-100 pass rusher picking Duke over national offers isn’t such a bold take considering we just saw Manny Diaz and company accomplish as much in the 2025 cycle with Bryce Davis. Quinn may be just as tough to pull off, though, considering he is an Atlanta-area star the Georgia Bulldogs and many others very much want.
The Blue Devils went in-home with Quinn in January and have been steady with him since offering back in October.
FLORIDA STATE
The Pensacola Catholic standout is rising up national recruiting boards at a premium position, the type Florida State closed well with late in the 2025 cycle. Henderson will be a tougher win given the blue blood competition from early in this recruitment, so stamping the best defender in the Panhandle could go a long way toward Mike Norvell flipping perception back on the positive side of the coin in Tallahassee.
GEORGIA TECH
This one seems pretty simple. Georgia Tech signed one of its best classes ever in 2024, but it did not bring in an off-ball linebacker prospect. Fairchild is a Peach State native, holds some classic inside linebacker traits and he has lifted up the Jackets at every opportunity.
The race is growing harder to land him, but GT has legitimate staying power here.
LOUISVILLE
When Jeff Brohm personally stops in to see a skill position prospect on offense, his status on the recruiting board may feel set. That was the case for Jones in January as multiple Cardinals coaches stopped by to see the Oklahoma native.
Of course, the in-state Sooners loom large here but UofL is in the top group alongside Oklahoma, Kansas, Vanderbilt and Tennessee. It looks like a slew of June official visits are on deck here, with the Cardinals getting their shot near the end of the slate, so game on.
MIAMI
The local five-star has been a key target for Mario Cristobal and company since the board for 2026 was formed, and Cooper has frequented campus since. He is extremely familiar and comfortable with Miami, which will be in this race until its conclusion, but a national brand of heavy hitters are steady after the two-way star as well.
Georgia briefly held Cooper’s commitment and remains a prime contender alongside Ohio State, Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Florida State and others.
NC STATE
The top-ranked defensive end recruit in America also sits as the top-ranked defender in the state of North Carolina and a top-20 prospect overall regardless of position. NC State hasn’t landed a prospect ranked in five-star range in well over a decade and winning out for him also means twin brother and fellow priority Andrew Harris jumps in with the Wolfpack.
The top-ranked defender in the state hasn’t picked the Pack since Kentavius Street in the class of 2014.
NORTH CAROLINA
The five-star tight end is of course also an elite basketball prospect and both programs in Chapel Hill want him on their future roster. The in-state star is set on playing both sports at the next level, ala some great tight end recruits of yesteryear and it’s clear North Carolina will remain in the hunt despite the coaching transition.
Of course Bill Belichick now on the case on the football front won’t hurt, especially with his history of prioritizing the position.
PITTSBURGH
The Panthers sport just one verbal commitment to date, but it’s a big one in quarterback Angelo Renda. But when the program is rolling in the ACC or even in prior conferences, there was seemingly always a great back for the offense to be built around.
Akih is a Rivals250 recruit with several schools hot on his trail, and Pitt is in the thick of it having penciled in a June official visit despite Ohio State, Miami, USC and others also expecting him in the coming weeks and months.
SMU
The Mustangs are fresh off of a College Football Playoff berth in the often wide open ACC, so recruiting should continue to trickle up under Rhett Lashlee. That means contending for more of the state of Texas’ top prospects and it means winning battles against the Longhorns, Aggies and others in the process.
Turntine would achieve plenty on both fronts, and he is fresh off of an unofficial visit to SMU with high remarks coming out of the trip. An official visit to Dallas seems likely and it will be necessary with Texas and Texas A&M among those primarily involved.
STANFORD
A legacy prospect whose older brother is currently at Stanford and plays the same position, Trent may be even more coveted nationally and it only re-emphasizes the Cardinal need to keep him within state lines. Each of Mosley’s parents went to Notre Dame and the Irish want the Californian in the class, so this is no layup.
Texas, USC and others are also working on getting the junior back on campus before a decision is to be made this offseason.
SYRACUSE
The two-sport standout has been courted by both the football and basketball program at Syracuse and he has frequented campus as well, dominating an offseason football camp last summer before taking in multiple games in 2024.
Russell has a national offer list and has been coveted by bluebloods for years, but the Orange are a major player here anyway. They signed his prep teammate Darius Johnson in the 2025 class, too.
VIRGINIA
A top-15 recruit in the state of Maryland, a critical pipeline for the Cavaliers, Ferguson sits near the top of the program’s board at running back and he is fresh off of his third visit to Charlottesville just as his recruitment heats up.
Head Cav Tony Elliot is personally involved with the versatile prospect and has helped Virginia stick around in this Big Ten and ACC race.
VIRGINIA TECH
No program recruits a string of family members, especially brothers, the way Virginia Tech historically has and the 2026 class has a double legacy recruit in the state of North Carolina in Reddish. The younger brother of Quentin and Joseph Reddish, both on the VT roster and in the secondary, two trips to Blacksburg are upcoming. One will be in the spring months and the other is a locked in official visit for the weekend of June 6.
Notre Dame, USC and others are trying to spoil the Reddish pipeline Brent Pry has helped build.
WAKE FOREST
The Deacons thrust themselves into what has become a true ACC/SEC battle for the two-sport star, who projects best at tight end. This is one recruit head coach Jake Dickert has connected with personally, including when the offer went down in January.
Florida State, Louisville, South Carolina and others have since joined the race for one of the best in the home state, so a win here would be a big splash on the trail.
