Former Notre Dame EDGE Junior Tuihalamaka enters the Transfer Portal after being granted 5th year of eligibility
Former Notre Dame defensive end Junior Tuihalamaka is officially back for the 2026 CFB season. He won’t, however, be back with the Irish.
And just like that, former Notre Dame defensive end Junior Tuihalamaka is back in college football, but it will not be for the Fighting Irish in 2026. Tuihalamaka was one of 16 players granted an eligibility order by a court in Louisiana to return to college football for a 5th year of eligibility.
Originally a member of the 2022 recruiting class, Tuihalamaka did not receive a redshirt during his time with Notre Dame, exhausting his eligibility after the 2025 season. With the new college football landscape changing this offseason through the 5-for-5 rule, several players have been fighting for their additional year of eligibility.
For now, Tuihalamaka has been granted that opportunity.
Tuihalamaka opts for the transfer portal over a return to South Bend
There was some conversation about whether he would return to Notre Dame and head coach Marcus Freeman after the recent news, but his next steps have become apparent. Tuihalamaka has opted for the transfer portal. He will find a new spot to end his college career and take his game somewhere other than South Bend.
During his four years with the Notre Dame program, Tuihalamaka posted 61 total tackles, 9 tackles for loss, and 4 sacks. After arriving as a linebacker recruit in the 2022 class, he eventually made the transition to defensive end.
While Tuihalamaka was never an elite player or a difference maker for the Fighting Irish, he was a solid rotational player over the last couple of years and had some impressive moments during his time in South Bend, including his college football playoff performance against Georgia in Notre Dame’s victory.
Tuihalamaka is more of a quality rotational piece than a leader in an edge room, but he still brings a lot of value to any team he ends up with next. If he had chosen Notre Dame, he would have been a solid veteran addition. With how Notre Dame’s defensive end roster has changed over the last couple of years, there was simply no need to add another piece to that room.
Notre Dame’s defensive end room is already loaded
The Fighting Irish have Boubacar Traore, Bryce Young, Alabama transfer Keon Keeley, and true freshman 5-star pass rusher Rodney Dunham ready to lead the Notre Dame defensive end room and pass rush. Freeman and Co. are in tremendous shape at that position without Tuihalamaka in the fold.
With Tuihalamaka now getting a second chance at the end of his college career, it makes sense for him to go somewhere he can play a higher volume of snaps. He also gets another shot at the NFL Draft process after being injured during Pro Day this past season and not signing with any team following the 2026 NFL Draft. This is a bit of a mulligan for the end of his college career.
The landscape is changing rapidly, and while some of these eligibility stories can be tiresome to cover, it is great to see Tuihalamaka get another chance.
For those around South Bend, he was always admired as a great program and team player who would play any role he was asked to fill. From linebacker to defensive end, starter to backup to core special teamer, no matter what the California native was asked to do during his Fighting Irish career, he did it with a smile on his face.
Every Notre Dame fan out there will be hoping Tuihalamaka ends his career on a high note, wherever the talented defender ends up.
