Notre Dame football just started up fall camp recently and there’s high expectations around the Fighting Irish in 2026. Following a missed College Football Playoff last season, combined with what they returned this season and the work they did in the transfer portal, there’s a lot of excitement around Notre Dame. The Irish still have a few questions to work through along with their starting lineup ahead of the season, and one starting position battle that was set to happen now looks a lot different.

Offensive lineman Matty Augustine suffers broken foot

The big news out of Notre Dame football today is that offensive lineman Matty Augustine will miss extended time with a broken foot. Augustine suffered a broken right foot, specifically the fifth metatarsal, during an early fall camp practice.

Matty Augustine (right foot, fifth metatarsal) and Chaz Smith (right wrist, scaphoid) sustained injuries during preseason practice. The injuries will require surgery, and both players are expected to return to play this season.

— Notre Dame Football PR Team (@NDFootballPR) August 12, 2026

For Notre Dame, this isn’t a significant blow because Augustine only played in a few games last season, and wasn’t locked in as a starter for 2026. It is a blow, however, because he was going to be quality depth for the Fighting Irish at the very least, if not a starter at right guard if he was able to win that battle.

Augustine was a major sleeper to win the starting right guard battle at 6-foot-7 and 310 pounds. Augustine has wowed the Notre Dame coaches since arriving via the 2025 recruiting class. The redshirt freshman now has to wait to fight for that starting spot due to the injury, a massive blow to a strong offseason.

Sullivan Absher steps into the right guard role

With Augustine out, Sullivan Absher will assume a starting role vacated by the injured Charles Jagusah. It will be worth watching whether Augustine can unseat Absher down the road when he returns, because folks around South Bend remain high on him.!It is a setback for Augustine, who will have to work his way back from the injury. In the meantime, it gives Absher a chance to be Notre Dame’s right guard and potentially lock that spot down.

Losing Augustine is Notre Dame losing one of their more versatile offensive linemen. He has the ability to play guard and tackle, and those kinds of offensive linemen are becoming more and more valuable with how rosters are set up now in college football.

The other injury note out of fall camp is that freshman cornerback Chaz Smith will undergo surgery on his right wrist. Smith is expected to return this season from the injury.

That’s the first major injury update out of Notre Dame’s fall camp. As always, it’s next man up.