Where Notre Dame ranks first US LBM Coaches Poll of 2026

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The first US LBM Coaches Poll has been released today, and we know have found out how the coaches view Notre Dame entering the 2026 season.

The Irish came in at No. 5 behind just Ohio State, Oregon, Georgia, and Texas. The Buckeyes and Longhorns will meet in Week 2, meaning one of the top-5 teams will have a loss very early in the year. Notre Dame can capitalize off those two teams battling it out, as they could move up a spot after that marquee matchup.

While the preseason poll won’t look much like what it will be at the end of the year, its a good judge of expectations on the year, one where many believe that Notre Dame should be among the top teams in the country. The Irish received five first-place votes, fifth nationally behind Ohio State, Indiana, Georgia and Oregon.

This ranking for Notre Dame is pretty fair, as they have a few questions surrounding the team, much like the others inside the top-25. The Irish have less than many of those other teams, which is why they ended up at No. 5. You could make an argument that Notre Dame should have been a bit higher, but does it really matter at this point? I don’t think it does.

Looking ahead at Notre Dame’s 2026 slate, the Irish will face off against No. 7 Miami, No. 15 BYU and No. 20 SMU, giving them a very solid strength of schedule. The season is just around the corner, and the excitement and expectations for Notre Dame have never been higher.

Here is the table:

RankSchool (Record)PointsLast Season's Rank1st Place Votes
1Ohio State (12-2)1,741638
2Oregon (13-2)1,63746
3Georgia (12-2)1,59157
4Texas (10-3)1,544132
5Notre Dame (10-2)1,524115
6Indiana (16-0)1,522114
7Miami, FL (13-3)1,4092–
8Texas A&M (11-2)1,1748–
9Oklahoma (10-3)1,10410–
10Mississippi (13-2)1,0963–
11Alabama (11-4)1,0509–
12Texas Tech (12-2)1,0347–
13LSU (7-6)951NR–
14USC (9-4)83821–
15BYU (12-2)78112–
16Michigan (9-4)71922–
17Penn State (7-6)463NR–
18Tennessee (8-5)428NR–
19Washington (9-4)406NR–
20SMU (9-4)378NR–
21Utah (11-2)31314–
22Iowa (9-4)29117–
23Clemson (7-6)235NR–
24Houston (10-3)19419–
25Missouri (8-5)158NR–

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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Where Notre Dame ranks first US LBM Coaches Poll of 2026

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