Just 10 days after winning the national title in 2024, Ryan Day offered a standout 2027 QB prospect. At the time, Champ Monds was a 4-star 2028 prospect until he reclassified last December. Ohio State remained locked in with the QB and hosted him on several occasions, including at a 7-on-7 tournament. But now, when it’s time to reap the rewards and land his commitment, another program is expected to swoop in.

“Today’s April 22. I would assume sometime in the next five to seven days, [Champ] Monds will make a decision,” ON3’s Max Torres said on Rivals’ April 22 podcast. “Florida State and Ohio State are obviously the other two schools that he’s keen on. But yeah, I give the [Notre Dame] Irish the edge and my predictions on Notre Dame.”

Monds, an imposing 6-foot-2, 219-pound prospect, first gained attention as the top QB in the 2028 class after a freshman season with over 2,700 total yards. His decision to reclassify to 2027 appears strategic, moving him into a thinner quarterback class where only four QBs currently rank in Rivals’ top-70 players. While Monds was pondering a switch, Ohio State was pursuing him aggressively.

“Really, their coaching staff,” Monds said about Ohio State. “They’re so down to earth and so humble. They make me feel welcome, and everybody is super nice. No matter who it is, everyone is just super happy, and it’s a great place to be…Of course, they’re a prestigious program and just came off winning the national championship when they offered.”

Most recently, Monds had visited Ohio State at its Student Appreciation Day practice this spring. Interestingly, Monds was the only other QB besides Ryan Day’s 2027 QB commit, Brady Edmunds, and that showed how serious the head coach was about getting his commitment. For Monds, too, the OSU staff, with QB coach Billy Fessler and new OC Arthur Smith, stood out as he signaled he was leaning heavily towards OSU.

“It was a great visit overall, getting to see coach Billy Fessler, coach Ryan Day, and coach Arthur Smith,” Monds said about his visit. “I just wanted to get up there and see them operate the offense again. It was a great experience overall getting to meet Julian Sayin and all the receivers in that wide receiver room and see how much of a brotherhood those guys have.”

While Ryan Day was working relentlessly in Columbus to land Monds, 100 miles away in South Bend, Marcus Freeman was planning a last-minute coup. Freeman’s 2027 class already has 9 commits, but none are QBs. That means Monds can be a legit successor for CJ Carr at the Irish, which won’t be the case at Ohio State with Brady Edmunds’ 2027 commitment. Additionally, all signs point to a potential Notre Dame coup for Monds’ commitment.

Signs signaling Notre Dame has already sealed Champ Monds’ commitment

Apart from Monds, Notre Dame was also after the nation’s 9th-ranked QB, Peter Bourque. A week later, news broke that Bourque would visit South Bend, and that visit could play a major role in his potential commitment to Notre Dame. Unexpectedly, now, Marcus Freeman has canceled the visit, signaling that Monds’ commitment to Notre Dame is locked.

“This past weekend, Peter Bourque, the talented quarterback from the Northeast, was going to be visiting [Notre Dame] upcoming Tuesday, and then he canceled his visit. Or I should say Notre Dame canceled his visit,” Max Torres said. “All right, this is a matter of if, not when. I would think it would take a colossal collapse if Notre Dame doesn’t get this [Champ Monds’ commitment] one over the line.”

According to current ON3 predictions, Monds has a 92.6% chance of committing to Notre Dame. FSU follows in second with just a 2.4% possibility to land him. For Ohio State, though, the move would hurt, but they would still cope, considering Brady Edmunds is still there. Or maybe, defying all predictions, Ohio State can eventually seal Monds’ commitment come June?