The Catholics vs. Convicts rivalry is back this weekend. Notre Dame football and the Miami Hurricanes meet at 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium, in what should be one of the more competitive and important games of the entire 2026 college football season.

Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish desperately need a marquee win. On the other side, the Hurricanes want to protect their No. 1 overall ranking from the first College Football Playoff rankings released last week.

Miami got some tough news this week. The Hurricanes announced that All-American wide receiver Malachi Toney will miss Saturday’s game and several more weeks with an ankle injury he suffered during practice.

From the sounds of it, after conversations I’ve had with folks, the procedure was a tightrope surgery with an estimated recovery time of four to six weeks. Toney and the Miami camp are hoping a strong rehab plan can cut that timeline in half.

His return date is a question to monitor over the next several weeks. For now, Notre Dame doesn’t have to worry about one of the best players in college football. Toney has hauled in 73 receptions for 1,027 yards and 13 touchdowns.

How Miami’s passing game changes without Malachi Toney

Without Toney, I’m curious to see how offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson adjusts Miami’s game plan. First and foremost, the Hurricanes still have a Heisman Trophy candidate at quarterback in Darian Mensah. He has completed 188-of-233 passes, nearly 81%, for 2,425 yards and 25 touchdown passes against just one interception.

This passing game still has the potential to be very good. That includes wide receiver Cooper Barkate, who has a deep relationship with Mensah that dates back to their 2025 season at Duke. Barkate enters Saturday as the team’s leading available receiver with 28 receptions for 372 yards and four touchdowns.

Barkate isn’t the dynamic after-catch threat that Toney is. Still, he has a good all-around skill set to win at multiple levels of the field, and he has enough wiggle to make some noise on screen passes. He is the player Notre Dame needs to stop first when Mensah drops back.

Beyond Barkate stepping into the No. 1 role, the biggest difference is how the other pass catchers respond. Daylyn Upshaw has 22 receptions for 263 yards and two touchdowns, and he has done a lot of good things. More will be on his plate as the potential second receiver. I would also expect standout tight end Elija Lofton, who has 20 catches for 236 yards and two touchdowns, to be featured a lot more.

Pass catchers Nos. 2, 3, and 4 are no longer secondary options. They are now prime targets for Mensah in a massive game.

After that trio, which young receiver steps up? Vandrevius Jacobs, Somourian Wingo, and true freshman Vance Spafford, one of the fastest players on the roster, are all talented. Each has minimal production because of limited opportunities. Someone will have to emerge.

Could the Hurricanes lean on the running game?

Miami could also lean into its running game more than originally planned. The Hurricanes have a pair of talented running backs in Mark Fletcher Jr. and true freshman Javian Mallory.

Fletcher was a big reason the Miami offense got off to a fast start against Notre Dame last year. The two backs bring much different skill sets. If the Irish aren’t prepared, especially with linebacker Drayk Bowen injured, the Hurricanes could find success on the ground.

Notre Dame’s defense needs to embrace its identity

In theory, the Toney news plays in Notre Dame’s favor. Under defensive coordinator Chris Ash, the Irish have shown a bad habit of turning passive in bigger contests, keeping everything in front of them to avoid big plays.

Without Toney, there should be more appetite to be aggressive and dare Miami’s younger, unproven pass catchers to beat this defense.

My original thought was that Notre Dame would let Leonard Moore shadow Toney across the field, whether he lined up in the slot or out wide. That plan is no longer necessary. Moore can stay at boundary corner, with Jayden Sanders playing mostly to the field and Christian Greit in the slot. The Irish can stick with that formula without getting overly exotic.

If you ask me, the best path is for Notre Dame to commit to its true identity. That means aggressive press-man coverage and as much heat on Mensah as possible. It might give up an explosive play from time to time, but a defense has to know what it does well. When Notre Dame is aggressive, it is at its best.

Without a Toney-like threat on the outside, there’s no reason the Irish shouldn’t dare Miami to make big plays and potentially force Mensah into bad decisions. Barkate and company still form a good receiver room. Even so, you have to like Notre Dame’s chances of making its fair share of plays with All-American cornerback Leonard Moore leading a deep secondary.

How both game plans shift will be fascinating to watch. It’s hard to imagine there won’t be some shuffling on both sides with Toney sidelined for the Hurricanes.