On3 takes a controversial early stance on Notre Dame star CJ Carr and his place amongst the best CFB quarterbacks
The CJ Carr disrespect has started early. Where should the Notre Dame signal caller be rated amongst the top CFB quarterbacks?
We are in the quiet section of the college football offseason, but as always, we can count on On3 to provide some controversial topics for conversation. In their latest top-100 college football returning for the 2o26 season, published by college football analyst Clark Brooks, five Notre Dame players were included: cornerback Leonard Moore, offensive lineman Anthonie Knapp, defensive end Boubacar Traore, linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, and quarterback CJ Carr.
Seeing those five players included wasn’t the controversial part. We could have a strong conversation around players like Adon Shuler and Tae Johnson not being included, but there was something much more egregious: Carr’s placement on that list. In total, there were 13 quarterbacks included inside the top-100, but Carr came in at just No. 85 overall and the No. 10 quarterback.
Here is where each quarterback was placed on the list.
2. Dante Moore (Oregon)
8. Sam Leavitt (LSU)
9. Julian Sayin (Ohio State)
10. Arch Manning (Texas)
22. LaNorris Sellers (South Carolina)
31. Jayden Maiava (USC)
44. Darian Mensah (Miami)
45. Trinidad Chambliss (Ole Miss)
66. Jaron–Keawe Sagapolutele (Cal)
85. CJ Carr (Notre Dame)
87. Drew Mestamaker (Oklahoma State)
89. Josh Hoover (Indiana)
91. Gunner Stockton (Georgia)
The understandable
There seem to be two camps in the Notre Dame fandom this offseason: those who think that Carr has already cemented himself as arguably the best quarterback in college football, and others who were very happy with the progress he showed as a redshirt freshman but expect him to take a solid jump in 2026. During that first season as a starter, Carr managed to throw for 2,741 yards and 24 touchdowns, while completing nearly 67 percent of his passes and throwing just six interceptions.
I am, admittedly, much more in the second camp, so I didn’t expect Carr to be rated as the top quarterback in the country heading into next season. It’s understandable why Dante Moore is rated in front of him, even if he was rated a bit high overall on that list. He put together a nice season in 2025 despite being without wide receiver Evan Stewart the entire year and Dakorien Moore down the stretch of the season.
There is also a solid case why Sayin is in front of Carr, even if I do believe that he is the better player. Sayin is coming off a year where he was a Heisman Trophy finalist and also has a ton of talent returning on the offense. There is a resume element to this list that has to be baked in, on top of projecting forward. Manning also returns a ton of talent on the Texas offense and should make a big jump as a second-year starter.
I even understand why Chambliss is in front of Carr. He is coming off a really impressive stretch of football, which also included a deep playoff run. You can also make a production case for Mensah. Carr should have, however, been included inside the top-6 quarterbacks, at the very least.
The egregious
My biggest issues come with Leavitt, Sellers, Maiava, and Sagapolutele being in front of Carr. Outside of Maiava, the production comparison isn’t even close between the other three and the Fighting Irish signal caller. I assume Leavitt is getting some grace coming off the injury and now working with head coach Lane Kiffin, but there are still a ton of questions that need to be answered. Missing the majority of this offseason doesn’t strengthen his case.
Sellers has all the talent in the world, but he is coming off a down 2025 season, and there isn’t much reason for optimism returning to an underwhelming supporting cast with the Gamecocks. Sagapolutele is also a player I really like, but what did he do last season to be rated above Carr? Heading into next season, what gives someone optimism that he will have a better season?
The USC offense is going to allow Maiava to put up some good numbers, but did anyone think that he was better than Carr last season? Really? He is also losing his top two wide receivers from a year ago in Makai Lemon and Ja’Kobi Lane. Heading into next season, I feel confident in saying that Carr is a much better spot than Maiava.