The Kansas Jayhawks have secured a commitment from 2026 three-star athlete JJ Dunnigan, he announced at the Under Armour All-American Game on Thursday.
BREAKING: 2026 recruit JJ Dunnigan commits to Kansas, hopes to be next star two-way player in college football
The Jayhawks are getting a potential two-way talent coming their way.
Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Rohan Chakravarthi is the site manager at Bucky’s 5th Quarter, contributes to Niners Nation and covers high school recruiting for SBNation.com.
Dunnigan, a 6’2”, 185-pound defensive back from Manhattan, Kansas, chose the Jayhawks over fellow in-state school Kansas State, Nebraska and Stanford.
Initially expected to announce his commitment on January 1st, Dunnigan delayed his decision by one day, thanks to the opportunity to play in the All-American Game, instead announcing his decision live at the event on Thursday.
Looking ahead to his decision earlier this week, Dunnigan cited the location factor as a notable part of his recruitment, which made sense given that his finalists included two in-state schools, as well as Nebraska.
Dunnigan took visits to all three schools this past fall, even going to visit Nebraska multiple times before making his decision to start the new year.
The 6’2”, 185-pound defensive back is projected as a cornerback, but has aspirations to play both ways and be the next two-way college football player, as he announced on the broadcast Thursday.
He now has closed off his recruitment early, choosing one of his hometown schools, although it wasn’t the closer one with a certain family connection.
There was buzz about Kansas State, as the defensive back attended high school less than three miles away, while his father, James Dunnigan, was a cornerback at Kansas State during the early 2000s. There was thought that Dunnigan could follow in his father’s footsteps, but he’s paving his own path at another in-state school
Dunnigan has shined with a strong blend of length and speed, which has been seen throughout his high school career and during this week’s practices at the Under Armour All-American Game.
Dunnigan’s desire to play both ways is intriguing, as the idea has been more welcomed in college football recently since Colorado star Travis Hunter has gained notoriety for the move over the past few years, winning the Heisman Trophy this season.
But, on the defensive end, while being listed as both a safety and a cornerback, Dunnigan has the ability to move around all over the field, given his size and speed, which could pave a path for earlier playing time when he arrives on campus in 2026.
He becomes the third person to commit to Kansas in the 2026 class, joining three-star cornerback Lennie Brown and quarterback Jaylen Mason.
He is the second player of four to commit at the Under Armour All-American Game, joining four-star wide receiver Donovan Murph, who re-classified from the 2026 class to the 2025 class and committed to South Carolina.
