Canadian DL Linkin Zylstra details Notre Dame interest following Irish Invasion camp
After Linkin Zylstra learned that Notre Dame defensive line coach Al Washington and assistant Nick Sebastian were interested in seeing him compete at this month’s Irish Invasion camp, the 2026 defensive lineman from Oakdale (Conn.) St. Thomas More School could hardly wait to accept their invitation.
“It’s Notre Dame,” Zylstra said. “It’s a pretty sweet place. I love it here.”
Although the 6-foot-2, 280-pound Zylstra’s camp performance did not immediately yield a Fighting Irish scholarship offer, it still gave him an otherwise invaluable experience.
Entering the camp, Zylstra, who does not yet have an On3 Industry Ranking rating, held scholarship offers from Connecticut, Massachusetts and Temple. Now, he can say he put himself on Notre Dame’s radar.
“It came together well,” he said. “I thought it was good because I got lots of reps. There weren’t many people, but there were a lot of good players. It built up the cardio to showcase myself.”
Zylstra also complimented getting to work with Washington and Sebastian, which was a highlight.
“It was great,” he said. “They know their stuff for sure. They’ve been around the country at different colleges. I learned a lot today.”
Linkin Zylstra talks about Notre Dame’s Canadian connection
Before his 2023 season at St. Thomas More School, Zylstra attended Grant Park High in Winnipeg, Manitoba. His Canadian roots grasped familiarity with Notre Dame’s connection beyond the border.
In the 2023 cycle, the Irish signed two Canadian defensive line products: Mississauga, Ontario’s Devan Houstan and La Prairie, Qubec’s Armel Mukam. They continued the pipeline in 2024 with Sean Sevillano, who, like Zylstra, is also from Winnipeg.
Zylstra noticed Notre Dame has done a great job with their transition to college life in South Bend.
“They recruit them a lot and make them feel like home here,” he said. “It’s nice to have more Canadians on a team.”
During the camp, Sevillano helped Zylstra through drills and confident in his performance.
“I talked to him a lot beforehand and as camp was going on,” he said. “He gave me tips all the time.”
After the Irish Invasion, Zylstra camped at Indiana (June 4), Penn State (June 9) and Stanford (June 14). During the 2023 football season, he attended Rutgers’ game against Michigan State on Oct. 14. Minnesota also hosted him on a spring visit in 2023.
In addition to those schools, he is also interested in UCLA and West Virginia. Wisconsin and Syracuse also reached out to him once coaches could start contacting recruits directly beginning June 15.
Zylstra wants to continue communicating with the Irish in hopes of returning to campus in the fall.
“I would like to get back for a game day,” he said.
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