2026 Spring Practice Thread

[Irish2155]

For those of you that have been fans for at least 30 years...tell me when was the last preseason where you legitimately felt not only optimism, but legitimate confidence, that ND would either contend for the ship or win the ship? For me, I was young and naive and felt 2005 and 2006 were the years with Brady Quinn. Back then it was just optimism, not confidence.

This preseason just feels different. How much do I put on the futures bet for CFP Champions?

I laid a hundred at +700 odds.

 

[NDQuebec]

Sounds silly now, but, for me, it was last year. (Responding to Mattmags post)

 

[Crazy Balki]

For those of you that have been fans for at least 30 years...tell me when was the last preseason where you legitimately felt not only optimism, but legitimate confidence, that ND would either contend for the ship or win the ship? For me, I was young and naive and felt 2005 and 2006 were the years with Brady Quinn. Back then it was just optimism, not confidence.

This preseason just feels different. How much do I put on the futures bet for CFP Champions?

I can say without question, I haven't felt anything close to this level of confidence in my adult life as a ND fan. I'd have to go back to probably 2006, when I was naively high on the team, based entirely off being #2 in the preseason and bringing back Quinn, Shark, etc.

I don't think we've had a season where I could point to every single position and say "Yeah, they're good".

Every year, there seems to be that one position or positions that we'd have to say, "If they can be just decent or good, ND might go somewhere".

In 2018, we knew ND's front 7 was going to be good. We didn't know what we had in the secondary, outside of Julian Love. Offensively, we still were unsure if the lights were going to come on for Wimbush, and if the OL had the talent and cohesion to work. Obviously, the secondary worked itself out, but QB and OL were hit and miss. Book ended up being good, but not championship caliber. The OL was solid, but unspectacular.

In 2020, we knew the OL was going to be good, and Book was going to be a good starting quality QB, but WR was a big question mark, even more so when Austin got hurt. We didn't really know what we had in Kyren Williams. The front 7 was going to be excellent, but the secondary was a question mark, namely corner, where you essentially ended up with true freshman Clarence Lewis starting next to transfer Nick McCloud. Sure, Hamilton was a stud, but you had to move Shaun Crawford to safety, who was woefully undersized and injury prone.

This year, I don't see THAT position anywhere. Sure, there's questions still. Is Jagusah going to be ready for week 1? Is the spring buzz re: the receivers going to translate? Are the shake ups in the OL going to yield an elite unit? Etc.

But as many have said, these aren't questions of "is this position going to be good or not?" and more so questions of "how good is this position going to be?" Because top to bottom, I'm fairly confident in saying every unit is going to be, bare minimum, good. Outside of kicker, because that one is usually a crap shoot until we see it on the field.

 

[IrishLax]

All this optimism but then I look at teams like Penn State and Texas last year -- who should've been dynamite on paper but imploded in the actual season -- and I remember that no one really knows anything until the ball is snapped.

I think ND has major question marks at OL and RB in terms of replacing some very good / experienced players but yeah the secondary is insane on paper. Maybe best we have ever had. LB is very good if they can stay healthy, DL is much better than last year... the defense alone should be good enough to keep you in every game.

So it's just about execution on offense.

 

[allenm5333]

All this optimism but then I look at teams like Penn State and Texas last year -- who should've been dynamite on paper but imploded in the actual season -- and I remember that no one really knows anything until the ball is snapped.

I think ND has major question marks at OL and RB in terms of replacing some very good / experienced players but yeah the secondary is insane on paper. Maybe best we have ever had. LB is very good if they can stay healthy, DL is much better than last year... the defense alone should be good enough to keep you in every game.

So it's just about execution on offense.

I will say, always felt clemson and penn state were overrated. Never trusted either qb. Also, Penn State legit lost their top 2 players and was expected to be fine.

 

[arrowryan]

All this optimism but then I look at teams like Penn State and Texas last year -- who should've been dynamite on paper but imploded in the actual season -- and I remember that no one really knows anything until the ball is snapped.

I think ND has major question marks at OL and RB in terms of replacing some very good / experienced players but yeah the secondary is insane on paper. Maybe best we have ever had. LB is very good if they can stay healthy, DL is much better than last year... the defense alone should be good enough to keep you in every game.

So it's just about execution on offense.

I have to disagree on Penn State. James Franklin is a career under achiever and Drew Allar had shown nothing to garner that much hype. Penn State’s high preseason ranking was entirely based off of wins against SMU and Boise State (lol).

I guess I was lower on Schrauth and Wagner. Schrauth ended on a high note against USC, but he was so damn inconsistent. I think a tackle combo of Black/Lambert gives Notre Dame the most potential, in terms of future NFL talent.

 

[HouseofPain]

It's 2026. Somehow Mylan Graham and Keon Keeley are on ND's roster. For some of us, these two represented a new chapter in the caliber of player ND could attract, retain and empower to bring Freeman's vision to fruition.



What a wild fucking time to be alive boys.

It's 2026. Somehow Mylan Graham and Keon Keeley are on ND's roster. For some of us, these two represented a new chapter in the caliber of player ND could attract, retain and empower to bring Freeman's vision to fruition.

If they go virtually any other school other than the premier school at their respective positions, they don't end up here as they likely become starters.

What a wild fucking time to be alive boys.

Curious as to what the board thinks about Keeley? He didn’t set the world on fire at Alabama and Alabama had not been a world beater in a while. Wasn’t sure if he was seriously considered to be starting this coming season there or not if he had stayed.

Do you see him to be in a true starter or more of a depth piece in his time at ND?

 

[stlnd01]

Curious as to what the board thinks about Keeley? He didn’t set the world on fire at Alabama and Alabama had not been a world beater in a while. Wasn’t sure if he was seriously considered to be starting this coming season there or not if he had stayed.

Do you see him to be in a true starter or more of a depth piece in his time at ND?

Figure he’s in the rotation and plays a good bit but doesn’t start over Young. Basically what Burnham would have been.

 

[RudyVerse]

Curious as to what the board thinks about Keeley? He didn’t set the world on fire at Alabama and Alabama had not been a world beater in a while. Wasn’t sure if he was seriously considered to be starting this coming season there or not if he had stayed.

Do you see him to be in a true starter or more of a depth piece in his time at ND?

It’s a money year for both and I just trust at least one of them to break out in year 3/4. Not uncommon for 5 star linemen.

 

[IrishLax]

I will say, always felt clemson and penn state were overrated. Never trusted either qb. Also, Penn State legit lost their top 2 players and was expected to be fine.

I have never been more wrong in my life than I was on Clemson. I thought Klubnik was the real deaal and they returned a bunch of top NFL draft picks... and finished 11th in the ACC lmao

 

[IrishLax]

Curious as to what the board thinks about Keeley? He didn’t set the world on fire at Alabama and Alabama had not been a world beater in a while. Wasn’t sure if he was seriously considered to be starting this coming season there or not if he had stayed.

Do you see him to be in a true starter or more of a depth piece in his time at ND?

I think he plays a ton. Rotational at DE and also rushing the passer inside on 3rd & long.

 

[tirishman505]

I have never been more wrong in my life than I was on Clemson. I thought Klubnik was the real deaal and they returned a bunch of top NFL draft picks... and finished 11th in the ACC lmao

I never really bought into Penn State or Clemson but your post immediately made me think of Ohio State. I think they really underachieved, especially with that defense. A lot of people thought they were going to repeat at this time last year.

 

[Te'o4Heisman]

There are a lot of contenders this year with really good QBs returning. Oregon, Texas, Ole Miss, Ohio State, Miami, Georgia, Texas Tech come to mind. Should be a great year in college football.

 

[Crazy Balki]

I never really bought into Penn State or Clemson but your post immediately made me think of Ohio State. I think they really underachieved, especially with that defense. A lot of people thought they were going to repeat at this time last year.

The defense was excellent. I simply don't believe in their run game. Their OL left a lot to be desired and he may share his name, but Bo Jackson is a good, not great back. Frankly, I'd probably take Nolan or Aneyas over him.

 

[Crazy Balki]

I'd argue about Texas. IMO Manning is no more of a proven qb than Klubnik was this time last year.

Yeah, I'm very skeptical of Arch. He had a couple good games against Vanderbilt and Arkansas, but frankly, both of those defenses were kinda ass last year. Even the Michigan game, he wasn't bad, but I wouldn't say he lit things up against a solid, but not elite defense.

I watched the A&M game, and remember watching that TD he threw to Wingo, it was UG-A-LY. Dude had him wide stinkin' open and threw an absolute wobbler that he nearly missed had Wingo not adjusted in time.

I felt his "resurgence" was kind of overblown. For all the good we saw against Vandy or Michigan, there was games like Georgia, where he was atrocious. But on the flip side, with Coleman added to a WR group along with Wingo and Mosley, he may just have too much talent around him to fail.

 

[NDFAN2008]

All this optimism but then I look at teams like Penn State and Texas last year -- who should've been dynamite on paper but imploded in the actual season -- and I remember that no one really knows anything until the ball is snapped.

I think ND has major question marks at OL and RB in terms of replacing some very good / experienced players but yeah the secondary is insane on paper. Maybe best we have ever had. LB is very good if they can stay healthy, DL is much better than last year... the defense alone should be good enough to keep you in every game.

So it's just about execution on offense.

Not worried about RB at all because we have the best RB coach and Williams actually averaged over 7 yards per carry in his 2 years. I think we will be fine there. At OL there may be some struggles to begin but by the time we get to Miami I think the unit will be better. We return 4 guys with starting experience. The biggest concern I have is Absher I think Black will be just fine.

 

[MacIrish75]

Not worried about RB at all because we have the best RB coach and Williams actually averaged over 7 yards per carry in his 2 years. I think we will be fine there. At OL there may be some struggles to begin but by the time we get to Miami I think the unit will be better. We return 4 guys with starting experience. The biggest concern I have is Absher I think Black will be just fine.

My expectation (as mentioned by at least one other person on here) is that with the running style of the current backfield that we’ll likely see both fewer carries for no gain or negative yardage, while also seeing fewer explosive runs. I’d expect the overall YPC from last year to this year to be comparable.

 

[Irish#1]

All this optimism but then I look at teams like Penn State and Texas last year -- who should've been dynamite on paper but imploded in the actual season -- and I remember that no one really knows anything until the ball is snapped.

I think ND has major question marks at OL and RB in terms of replacing some very good / experienced players but yeah the secondary is insane on paper. Maybe best we have ever had. LB is very good if they can stay healthy, DL is much better than last year... the defense alone should be good enough to keep you in every game.

So it's just about execution on offense.

We should have guarded optimism. You never know what is going to come out of left field, but it does look promising. PSU and Texas didn't have Marcus.

 

[stlnd01]

I have to disagree on Penn State. James Franklin is a career under achiever and Drew Allar had shown nothing to garner that much hype. Penn State’s high preseason ranking was entirely based off of wins against SMU and Boise State (lol).

Yeah. The Penn State hype this time last year was baffling. Yes they *almost* beat us in the 2024 CFP just like they almost beat Oregon and kept it close against Ohio State, but their best actual win was probably Boise. They also had lost their clear best player on both sides of the ball and their passing game was obviously suspect, seemingly reliant on some hot-shit WR transfers who were never heard from again.
Clemson got hype because the ACC sucks and someone has to win it.

Even despite losing our best player (as Penn State did), we are - or should be - in a different category altogether.

 

[Irish#1]

Curious as to what the board thinks about Keeley? He didn’t set the world on fire at Alabama and Alabama had not been a world beater in a while. Wasn’t sure if he was seriously considered to be starting this coming season there or not if he had stayed.

Do you see him to be in a true starter or more of a depth piece in his time at ND?

I have a feeling Keeley will live up to expectations. He seems excited to be at ND. We've seen plenty of examples (any sport) where a guy never pans out as expected, but gets traded and plays at a level everyone originally expected. I think this may be the case for him.

 

[Irishcop]

Sounds silly now, but, for me, it was last year. (Responding to Mattmags post)

I agree, last year was the first time in a long time I let myself feel confident going into the season.

 

[Terry Jillery]

For those of you that have been fans for at least 30 years...tell me when was the last preseason where you legitimately felt not only optimism, but legitimate confidence, that ND would either contend for the ship or win the ship? For me, I was young and naive and felt 2005 and 2006 were the years with Brady Quinn. Back then it was just optimism, not confidence.

This preseason just feels different. How much do I put on the futures bet for CFP Champions?

I’m 40. I never once in my life felt confident they’d contend until right now.

 

[TNUtoNotreDame]

I am 48.... I was very confident in the 90's.... Then it died in the 2000-10 era(never bought the Quinn teams)...... BK gave me hope we could not suck, but not compete. Marcus gives me the same hope Lou gave me.... I am still cautious, but very hopeful.

 

[Ricochet]

I am 48.... I was very confident in the 90's.... Then it died in the 2000-10 era(never bought the Quinn teams)...... BK gave me hope we could not suck, but not compete. Marcus gives me the same hope Lou gave me.... I am still cautious, but very hopeful.

Also 48 and feel the same way. The ones younger than us won't understand the heartbreak of winning the game of the century against FSU to then get beat by that FG from Boston Colloge. That was the beginning not the fall from being a special program IMO.

 

[Old Man Mike]

I've felt that we were competitive potential contenders pre-season several times in the Kelly-Freeman era. All manner of things would have had to happen to get us all the way, of course, but that's what not being an overwhelming juggernaut means. I've never felt that we were an overwhelming juggernaut, and (due to the quality of the competitors) do not feel so now. But "competitive contenders"? Hell yes. Generally speaking, I've enjoyed "modern" Notre Dame football. Great to get out of the Weis+ years, let alone the Kuharich years. (By the way, it was no walk-in-the-park even with Parseghian, Devine, and Holtz. There were MANY nail biters and some disappointments even then. You have to go to ancient history to get the kind of legend that some here want.