The offseason for Notre Dame is in full swing. Yesterday, it was announced that defensive tackle Jason Onye would be granted a 6th year of eligibility and will play one more season in South Bend. The transfer portal chaos has also come to an end and, for the most part, the roster for the 2026 season has been set. There is now an established date for Notre Dame’s matchup against BYU in Provo, Utah. They also signed another kicker, Micah Drescher, from Illinois to the 2026 class.
Today, we dove into an overview of the Fighting Irish offense this upcoming season. We talked through statistics from this past season, what was lost, what’s returning and what the expectations are for Mike Denbrock’s unit in 2026. Led by soon-to-be redshirt sophomore quarterback CJ Carr, this offense is poised for another explosive year. This offense will be key in deciding whether Notre Dame is a contender or champion when the season is said and done.
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You can watch the entire show here:
Here are some of the topics discussed on today’s show:
On Jason Onye’s Return…
“This depth chart is pretty loaded now. They’re in a position that, a week and a half ago, we didn’t think they would be in. They’re pretty locked in now. It’s important that they were able to rectify this because I know we believe that if you’re not good up the middle on defense, you won’t be an elite defense. Could Notre Dame still have been good? Yeah, they would have still been good but you would have had to hit the inside straight from a development standout.”
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On Offensive Balance In 2026…
“We’re talking about winning a championship, not just getting back to the semi-finals. I’ve seen Notre Dame teams in the past that have been dominant on the ground, but remaining balanced has to be key. In 2020, Alabama had Mac Jones and DeVonta Smith; Najee Harris was an integral part of that offense. In 2019, LSU had Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson; Clyde Edwards-Helaire rushed for over 1,000 yards and had 16 rushing touchdowns. A balanced offense is imperative.”
On Getting More From The Passing Game…
“We saw some things last year that we haven’t seen in South Bend in quite some time. There was an attempt to push the ball down the field vertically and there were more one on one opportunities. It was great. The things we saw against Penn State in the Orange Bowl and against Ohio State in the National Championship, we saw as a part of the offense in 2025. But it’s not good enough to just say ‘cool, just do that’ in 2026. They need to get even more from the pass game this upcoming season.”
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