Hype surrounding Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr just hit another level following additional intel from Manning Passing Academy
The anticipation for C.J. Carr’s 2026 season has been building all offseason, but more intel from the Manning Passing Academy proves that Carr’s hype train is reaching max capacity ahead of a huge year for Notre Dame.
Many times, the Manning Passing Academy serves as a coming-out party for some of the best up-and-coming quarterbacks in college football.
In the case of Notre Dame Fighting Irish starting QB C.J. Carr, his 2025 season was one that caught the attention of many in the scouting world, even if Notre Dame didn’t meet expectations as a program. Back and better ahead of 2026, the hype around Carr has been a linear progression, with the Manning Passing Academy bringing the offseason excitement to a climax ahead of fall camp. A to Z Sports spoke to a source on the ground to see if the hype on Carr coming out of MPA was real, and they confirmed every bit of it.
CJ Carr 2025 stats
- 2,741 passing yards.
- 4:1 TD-INT ratio (24 touchdowns, 6 interceptions).
- 168.06 passer rating.
CJ Carr named unquestioned winner of MPA
“Carr was the best-looking passer out there, a source told A to Z Sports. “He’s just a complete quarterback. Very polished, smooth mechanics.”
Carr is one of the “cleaner” projections in the 2027 class, or at least so far in the early portions of projection season. His lack of truly elite traits is why some have him pegged closer to the second round than the top-5, but he may be the most “NFL ready” signal caller in the draft come next April.
He has extremely high football intelligence; he’s a pinpoint passer, and above all else, he was born with the quarterback gene. The innate instincts that you either have or don’t have when lifted from the crib for the first time. It’s an intangible that’s hard to describe, impossible to teach, and rarely found, but one that Carr possesses in spades.
How CJ Carr cements himself as a first-rounder in the 2027 NFL Draft
Assuming Carr only builds off of his 2025 campaign, the one trait that could bring him over the top is arm strength. We rarely see a quarterback go from a “noodle arm” to a howitzer in an offseason, but tangible progress can be made with strength and conditioning and slight tweaks to mechanics.
If Carr made those strides, we will know pretty soon into the regular season, and it will go a long way toward his final projection for 2027.