Four Notre Dame players rank in the top 50 by PFF College
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I recently finished my Top 20 list of Notre Dame football players for 2026 with a full explanation of why I had who, where (sort of). So it’s fun to see how these guys shake out on other lists from around the media and the country. PFF College just published its Top 50 Players in college football, and they were close to being on the same page as me… but not quite.
#2 Leonard Moore CB
Moore’s first two college seasons have been better than those of any cornerback in the PFF College era. According to PFF WAA, he was the third-most valuable cornerback in the nation as a true freshman in 2024, trailing only 2025 first-round picks Travis Hunter and Jahdae Barron. Moore led all cornerbacks in PFF overall grade (91.8) as a sophomore and was PFF’s pick for the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation’s top defensive back. He has seven career interceptions and projects as one of the best cornerback prospects in recent memory.
#14 CJ Carr QB
Carr is currently tied with Arch Manning as the betting favorite to win the Heisman Trophy (+750) at DraftKings Sportsbook. That follows a strong redshirt freshman campaign in which he ranked 14th nationally in PFF passing grade. His 6.5% big-time throw rate also ranked sixth in the Power Four.
With star running backs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price off to the NFL, Carr will be expected to shoulder much more of the offensive load as a redshirt sophomore.
#16 Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa LB
Viliamu-Asa became a superstar as a sophomore for the Fighting Irish and enters 2026 as the top returning linebacker in college football. His 89.7 PFF overall grade ranked second in the Power Four behind only Jacob Rodriguez, while his 94.0 PFF run-defense grade ranked second in the FBS, also behind Rodriguez. He also ranked eighth in the Power Four with an 83.3 coverage grade and even lined up off the edge at times, highlighting his versatility.
It is worth noting that Viliamu-Asa is coming off a torn ACL suffered in November, and his availability for the start of the season remains in question.
#44 Tae Johnson S
Johnson is the latest in a long line of supremely talented Notre Dame defensive backs. His first season as a starter was a rousing success, as he tallied four interceptions and three pass breakups. He also missed just two tackles all season, and his 82.8 PFF grade was a top-25 mark among qualified safeties.
First let me just say this… PFF is for nerds.
And that’s okay, I guess. We’re all nerds here in some way to the football gods, but there’s something about these numbers and formulas which drives me insane because I have two eyeballs, and have been obsessed with the game of football since the 1987 Cotton Bowl.
You can’t tell me THIS roster which will deliver over a dozen Round 1 and Round 2 NFL Draft picks over the next two years only has 4 players listed. You can’t — but they just did. We’ll see how the season goes, but something tells me that their final grades will be more in line with what I’m thinking now than what they’re thinking now.
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