Predicting the Notre Dame defensive line depth chart following the eligibility decision on starting DT Jason Onye
What will the Notre Dame defensive line rotation look like heading into the 2026 college football season?
Notre Dame football received some more great news on Tuesday night when it was announced that starting defensive tackle Jason Onye was granted an extra year of eligibility by the NCAA, meaning that the 6-5, 306-pound interior presence will return for the 2026 college football season. Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish entered the offseason with some major question marks on the defensive line, and they have managed to answer all of them. Onye puts the cherry on top for a very successful last couple of weeks.
With Armel Mukam also retained by the program, the baseline of veterans is in place, along with Onye and Elijah Hughes. The Irish staff, and mainly new defensive line coach Charlie Partridge, also has a very intriguing group of younger defensive linemen to work with. That includes redshirt freshman Christopher Burgess, a player who looks like a potential offseason breakout.
New faces for the Notre Dame defensive line
The Fighting Irish will be welcoming several new faces to that defensive line room in 2026. That includes Francis Brewu (Pitt) and Tionne Gray (Oregon) via the transfer portal. Both players were huge acquisitions for Notre Dame, for very different reasons. Brewu is a proven commodity on the field, while Gray brings raw size (6-6, 336 pounds) and upside to the table. This program is expecting both players to contribute a ton heading into next season. Add in defensive end Keon Keeley, and this defensive line just got a lot bigger and more impressive in the blind of an eye.
While a lot won’t be expected of either during the 2026 season, Notre Dame also just brought on two freshman defensive tackles in Elijah Golden and Tiki Hola. Five-star pass rusher Rodney Dunham was also a huge member of the 2026 recruiting class, as was toolsy defensive end Ebenezer Ewetade. It will be interesting to see if either of those defensive ends can crack the rotation next season. That is a testament to how well this Notre Dame staff has recruited under Freeman in recent years.
Projected defensive line depth chart
Here is how I project the Notre Dame defensive line depth chart heading into the 2026 college football season. Things are subject to chance, but regardless, this is a very impressive group.
First team
DE: Boubacar Traore (RS Jr.)
DT: Jason Onye (RS Sr.)
NT: Francis Brewu (Jr.)
DE: Bryce Young (Jr.)
Second team
DE: Loghan Thomas (Jr.)
DT: Armel Mukam (RS Jr.)
NT: Tionne Gray (RS So.)
DE: Keon Keeley (RS Jr.)
Third team
DE: Dominik Hulak (RS Fr.)
DT: Christopher Burgess (RS Fr.) or Cole Mullins (RS So.)
NT: Elijah Hughes (Sr.)
DE: Rodney Dunham (Fr.)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish News
Notre Dame makes a late addition to the 2026 recruiting class, gives a boost to one of the biggest question marks on the roster
Notre Dame made a very late addition to the 2026 recruiting class.
