Irish Breakdown dissects Notre Dame's No. 5 preseason ranking. A loaded roster and tough schedule set the stage for a championship run.
As quickly as it came, the 2025-2026 college football season has come to a close. The Indiana Hoosiers capped off a 16-0 season and won the National Championship last night beating the Miami Hurricanes 27-21. Now, the attention turns to the 2026 season, and outlets are already starting to put together their Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings.
Notre Dame has consistently been ranked in the Top 5 from the outlets that have already released their early rankings; ESPN had them third while On3 had them ranked 4th. Sporting News released their Way-Too-Early rankings and had the Fighting Irish coming in at 5th behind Texas (No.4), Georgia (No. 3), Ohio State (No. 2) and Indiana (No. 1).
"How will the Irish respond to this year's playoff snub under coach Marcus Freeman, who is 43-12 since taking over as head coach? Quarterback CJ Carr – who had 2,751 yards, 24 TDs and six interceptions – is a Heisman Trophy contender. Running back Aneyas Williams and receivers Jaden Greathouse and Jordan Faison should work behind an experienced offensive line. Ohio State transfer wide receiver Quincy Porter is a nice addition. All-American cornerback Leonard Moore is back along with senior linebacker Drayk Bowen. Notre Dame opens with Wisconsin (Sept. 6) at Lambeau Field, and the home matchup with Miami (Nov. 7) will be huge." - Bill Bender, Sporting News
This is an extremely talented roster returning to South Bend; all chips are on the table and after last season's playoff snub, the Irish are going all in on this year to bring home the 12th National Championship. Freeman and his staff have a spoil of riches across the board. This team is loaded with depth and high-level talent that will make impact plays Saturday after Saturday.
Three of Notre Dame's 2026 regular season opponents are ranked in the Sporting News Way-Too-Early Top 25. The Miami Hurricanes are ranked No. 8, the BYU Cougars are ranked No. 11 and the SMU Mustangs are ranked No. 23. The Irish added BYU to the schedule after USC elected to end their historic rivalry, giving them a bump in strength of schedule and quality of opponent; USC came in ranked No. 14 in the Sporting News rankings.
Sporting News Way-Too-Early Top 25
1. Indiana Hoosiers
2. Ohio State Buckeyes
3. Georgia Bulldogs
4. Texas Longhorns
5. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
6. Oregon Ducks
7. Texas Tech Red Raiders
8. Miami Hurricanes
9. Oklahoma Sooners
10. Ole Miss Rebels
11. BYU Cougars
12. Alabama Crimson Tide
13. Texas A&M Aggies
14. USC Trojans
15. Utah Utes
16. Michigan Wolverines
17. LSU Tigers
18. Penn State Nittany Lions
19. Louisville Cardinals
20. Iowa Hawkeyes
21. Houston Cougars
22. Illinois Fighting Illini
23. SMU Mustangs
24. Washington Huskies
25. Vanderbilt Commodores
The Duke Blue Devils and the Virginia Tech Hokies just missed the cut in the Sporting News rankings. They noted that TCU, Tennessee, Missouri, Georgia Tech, Clemson and Northwestern were all teams to keep your eye on in 2026.
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