Notre Dame football enters the 2026 college football season with legitimate national championship expectations.

Head coach Marcus Freeman returns all three coordinators, quarterback CJ Carr comes back for his second season in South Bend, and the Fighting Irish offensive and defensive lines are as deep and talented as they have been in recent memory. The pieces are in place for a special year, and it is time to plant the flag.

For those who have followed me over the years, you know that I am a cautiously optimistic Notre Dame fan. Born in 1991, I missed the true golden era of Notre Dame football. I have been hoping and yearning to see a national championship, to feel one, to watch those glory years return.

There is BK PTSD that has been injected into me after years of heartbreak under Brian Kelly, and more so under Bob Davie, Tyrone Willingham, and Charlie Weis. There have been times when I felt like Notre Dame was never going to get over that mountaintop.

But I am planting my flag here, and I don’t usually do this. I am predicting that Notre Dame will win a national championship in 2026. Not that they can. That they will.

There are several reasons why I feel so confident about this Fighting Irish team.

Coaching continuity from the top down

The first reason is cohesiveness. Notre Dame returns Freeman, offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock for his third season, second-year defensive coordinator Chris Ash, and special teams coordinator Marty Biagi. Having all three coordinators back on all three sides of the football matters a ton in the Wild West of college football, where players and coaches move from team to team in the blink of an eye.

You are always going to have some overhaul at the position coach level. You are never going to keep a full staff together. But if you had to bargain, you would rather bring back your coordinators than your position coaches. That consistency from the top down is vital heading into a season with championship aspirations.

CJ Carr’s return changes everything

The second reason is quarterback CJ Carr returning for his second season. It has been a long time since Notre Dame fans felt this optimistic about their signal caller.

Fans respected Ian Book for what he accomplished, and Jimmy Clausen was tremendous during his final season, but the last time the fanbase felt this strongly about a quarterback heading into a season was probably during the Brady Quinn years. Carr threw 24 touchdown passes with only 6 interceptions, completed over 66% of his passes, and threw for 2,741 yards in 12 games as a redshirt freshman.

There is already significant 2027 NFL Draft conversation surrounding him. You know how he is wired as a former top recruit, and the ascension feels real heading into his redshirt sophomore campaign.

Building from the inside out

The reason I feel most strongly about, and the way I believe great teams on both the college and NFL level win championships, is building from the inside out.

Notre Dame’s offensive and defensive lines are as deep and talented as I can remember during my entire Notre Dame fandom. I cannot recall a time when I felt this good about both units to this degree. There have been years where the offensive line was elite, perhaps the best in college football, but the defensive line had a hole here or there. That is not the case heading into 2026.

On the offensive line, Will Black steps in at left tackle as a former five-star recruit. Guerby Lambert looks strong at right tackle. Anthonie Knapp moves into left guard and projects as a tremendous player in that alignment. Ashton Craig returns from injury at center, and behind the starters, Sullivan Absher, Joe Otting, and eventually Matty Augustine provide quality depth.

Would you like Charles Jagusah healthy at right guard? Sure. But the fact that Notre Dame has so many options is a great place to be. It was not long ago that one injury meant Tosh Baker was being pushed onto the field. The overall talent and depth of this group is in a different stratosphere now.

On the defensive line, there are a couple of things you need to see play out.

Who are the secondary pass rushers behind Boubacar Traore? How good are Bryce Young and Alabama transfer Keon Keeley? Can true freshman five-star Rodney Dunham make a massive impact early? Transfers Tionne Gray and Francis Brewu on the interior still need to prove themselves in live games.

But the depth at defensive tackle is staggering. Notre Dame can go five to six deep, including Brew, Gray, Armel Mukam, Jason Onye, Sean Sevillano Jr., and Elijah Hughes. Christopher Burgess will most likely return at some point during the 2026 season as he recovers from his offseason injury.

At defensive end, the depth is equally impressive. Notre Dame is reaching the point where it can throw waves of defensive linemen at opponents the way Georgia did during its back-to-back national championship years in 2021 and 2022.

Star power in the biggest moments

The final reason is star power. When Notre Dame makes a deep postseason run, there will be games decided by individual playmakers rising to the occasion. Notre Dame has those players.

Leonard Moore is an All-American cornerback. Brauntae Johnson is one of the more talented safeties in all of college football. Adon Shuler is a tremendous player who will play in the NFL for a long time. Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa brings elite talent at the second level.

Traore anchors the defensive front. Carr leads the offense. In those money moments, the biggest moments in a football game to decide the outcome, I believe this team is going to make a play more often than not.

Those are my reasons for why Notre Dame will win a national championship in 2026. The coaching continuity, the quarterback play, the depth along both lines, and the star power all point toward a special season in South Bend.