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Notre Dame is a program on the rise. Over the last several seasons, head coach Marcus Freeman has been stacking recruiting classes and building out the coaching staff he believes will bring the Irish their 12th national championship. The stock is clearly rising in South Bend and the Irish are working their way up everyone's power rankings. In Phil Steele's magazine, Notre Dame is his No. 1 ranked preseason team in the country as well as the No. 1 ranked team in his power rankings. 

ESPN released their future power rankings in college football where they dove into all 68 teams at the P4 level. They evaluated every team's quarterback situation, outlook in the trenches, roster management, star power (All-Americans, national award contenders, all conference contenders) and their coaching staff. After all that evaluation, the Fighting Irish are ESPN's No. 1 team in their future power rankings. 

Quarterback Situation

"After a series of transfers, Notre Dame has developed CJ Carr into a national awards contender," Adam Rittenberg of ESPN explained. "Carr will start his second season for the Irish. He's on the NFL draft radar but might opt to return in 2027, given the crowded quarterback class. Notre Dame has options for the post-Carr era with redshirt freshman Blake Hebert and true freshman Noah Grubbs." 

The Irish are also bringing in former 2027 quarterback recruit Teddy Jarrard who is now on campus and just received a commitment from former 2028 quarterback Champ Monds who reclassified to the 2027 class. The future of signal callers in South Bend is looking bright and is showing no signs of slowing down. Freeman is showing what it looks like to recruit the quarterback position at Notre Dame at a very high level. 

Outlook In The Trenches

"Notre Dame has been a line-of-scrimmage-based program, which should continue through 2027," Rittenberg stated. "The offensive line projects as a major strength, if it can stay healthy, as Notre Dame rotated players at different positions this spring. Ashton Craig and guard Anthonie Knapp both return, along with junior Sullivan Absher, and Notre Dame is hoping to finally get Charles Jagusah onto the field.

"The Irish are banking on potential at tackle with redshirt freshman Will Black, redshirt sophomore Guerby Lambert and others who can play multiple seasons," Rittenberg continued. "Craig is the only senior in the two-deep. Notre Dame didn't add many transfers this winter but supplemented its defensive line with Francis Brewu (Pitt), Tionne Gray (Oregon) and Keon Keeley (Alabama). They join junior ends Boubacar Traore and Bryce Young, and senior tackle Jason Onye. Of the transfers, only Gray has senior eligibility." 

This is the bets outlook Notre Dame has had in the trenches on both sides of the ball in quite some time. For the majority of this century, the offensive line has carried the brunt of the load with some talented defensive lines mixed into the conversation from 2000 to now. Currently, this is the best the offensive and defensive lines have looked at the same time in South Bend in my lifetime and the future is extremely bright. 

Roster Management

"Coach Marcus Freeman is building a national contender through recruiting and development, without being overly reliant on the portal," Rittenberg said. "Notre Dame retained Carr, standout cornerback Leonard Moore, Traore, linebacker Drayk Bowen and others, and signed the nation's No. 4 recruiting class for 2026, featuring 18 SC Next 300 players and five in the top 50, including defensive end Rodney Dunham, the No. 31 overall prospect. The team's 2027 class already features 11 SC Next 300 commits.

"Notre Dame started slowly in the portal and added only seven players, addressing three positions: defensive line, wide receiver and defensive back," Rittenberg continued. "The D-line transfers jump out most, but wide receivers Mylan Graham and Quincy Porter from Ohio State could really help after the team couldn't land Nick Marsh. According to ESPN Recruiting, five of Notre Dame's seven transfers qualify as blue-chippers. Notre Dame's portal departures included edge Joshua Burnham (Indiana) and backup quarterback Kenny Minchey (Kentucky)." 

Building through high school recruiting and supplementing through the portal has been something Freeman has preached over the last several seasons. Attracting the right kind of player to South Bend is something he's exceled at. In this day and age of college football, retaining a roster is now just as impressive as signing a five-star recruit or the hottest name in the transfer portal. 

Star Power

"Moore was a Thorpe Award finalist in 2025 after earning first-team All-America honors, and will be the favorite to win the prize this fall," Rittenberg explained. "Carr also will enter the national awards conversation if he takes another step. Other notables include Traore, the team's top pass rusher, Brewu and Craig, a Rimington Trophy contender."

One of Freeman's biggest accomplishments in South Bend has been killing the stigma that 'top level talent doesn't go to Notre Dame'. Since his arrival, Freeman has had several Consensus All-Americans and a handful of Unanimous All-Americans. The Irish are attracting, producing and developing top-level talent at an extremely high rate. Freeman and his staff have showcased their abilities in developing star talent in South Bend. 

Coaching Staff

"Freeman remained at Notre Dame despite another strong push from the NFL, which isn't hiding its desire to pry away the 40-year-old," Rittenberg shared. "He retained all three of his primary coordinators but reshaped much of the defensive staff. Aaron Henry and Charlie Partridge both reunited with coordinator Chris Ash and will coach defensive backs and defensive line, respectively. Veteran defensive assistant Brian Jean-Mary will oversee the linebackers."

Offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock is coming off a season where his offense set a modern day record in points per game (42.0) and yards per play (7.3). Carr shattered the program record for passer rating. After a rough start, the defense turned around their fortunes after a switch in philosophy by defensive coordinator Chris Ash and ended up having the best rush defense in South Bend since the well-renowned 2012 season. Some coaches on this staff have a lot to prove, but many believe the pieces are in place for Freeman to go on a dynastic run with this staff. 

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