Ryan and Clinton continue to roll through Big Ten spring spotlights, talking Notre Dame.
In 2025, Notre Dame had one of the best runnings games in college football -- ranking 3rd nationally averaging 5.7 yards per carry -- on the strength of a generational backfield in Jeremyiah Love and Jadarian Price. They achieved this (2,046 combined rushing yards, 29 combined rushing TDs) despite below-expectations play from the offensive line. With both backs off the the NFL, can Notre Dame come close to replicating last season's rushing offense with an improved offensive line, and a still-capable stable of running backs on the roster?
QB CJ Carr may be the best returning starting quarterback the Irish have had since Brady Quinn in 2006, and he is among the best returning QBs in the nation. However, he will need to get established with a new cast of WRs, as Notre Dame's 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th leading yards-producing receivers in 2025 are no longer on the roster. The room is as deep and talented as it has been in Marcus Freeman's tenure as head coach. However, can one (or two) of those players step up to be a true game-breaker for Carr out wide?
On defense, the Irish secondary should be among the best in the nation. They were fine getting after the QB last year -- finishing 26th nationally in sack rate, and finished 12th nationally in rush defense. That defensive line gets a bit of a makeover this season via the portal and high school recruiting. Can returning players Boubacar Traore and Bryce Young take a step forward in 2026, and can the imports on the interior successfully replace the players lost to graduation?
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