Duke football’s hot summer on the recruiting trail found some August momentum on Friday, but this time, the commitment came from a younger crowd.
Ayden Cain, a three-star defensive lineman from Georgia, committed to the Blue Devils on Friday. The Dutchtown High School product is 247Sports’ No. 58 defensive lineman…for the Class of 2026.
“100% Committed!” Cain wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, for his announcement.
Cain becomes the first 2026 commitment for Duke coach [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag], but the Blue Devils already have two dozen members of their 2025 recruiting class. The Hampton, Georgia native also continues a hot streak in the Peach State with Diaz landing more than a half-dozen Georgia high schoolers on the trail.
The newest Blue Devil measures out at 6-foot-1 and 265 pounds, according to his recruiting profile. He chose Duke over offers from Arkansas State, Liberty, SMU, Coastal Carolina, Wake Forest, and Michigan State, among others.
100% Committed!! @DutchtownFB1 @JohnGarcia_Jr @JeremyO_Johnson @ChadSimmons_ @RustyMansell_ @GinfanteMT @Coach_MannyDiaz @deucerecruiting @CoachCarswell @DukestheScoop @iamcoachrock pic.twitter.com/UxxDJcozVa
— Ayden Cain (@AydenCain2026) August 2, 2024
With high school football set to begin again in the coming weeks, he’ll get his junior campaign with the Bulldogs underway on August 16.