In the world of modern college football recruiting, especially when you inject the NIL landscape into things, there is always going to be some movement, including decommitments and flips to other programs.

Head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish have done a good job, as just about anybody, of limiting that movement and losing players in their respective recruiting classes. That includes in the 2026 recruiting class, where Notre Dame did not have a single decommitment the entire cycle, which is unheard of historically and especially in today’s game.

While Freeman did a tremendous job of limiting those losses this past cycle, there have been some decommitments in the past involving some really tremendous football players. And like every fan base, when that happens, there’s going to be some deflection.

We didn’t want that player. That player would never play for us. They were overrated. We know how things go down once a decommitment happens.

For Notre Dame, there are some players who at one point were committed to the Fighting Irish who could potentially play a huge role for this team in 2026 as it attempts to win its first national championship since the 1988 season.

This is not a negative on Notre Dame whatsoever. Everyone has to work through these types of recruiting headaches. If anything, it puts some more context to just how well the program has been recruiting under Freeman’s guidance. The 2026 class was elite, but thinking back to the 2023 class, Freeman’s first full recruiting class as head coach in South Bend, he has recruited at an extremely high level, and that includes even a couple of the “misses” over the last several years.

Players left off the list

A couple of notable names did not make the cut for this exercise. Quarterback Dante Moore was technically committed to the 2023 class, but after about a month as a silent commit, he opted to keep his recruitment open and never went public with his decision. Some would argue he was never fully committed.

And even if he was, would he be the starting quarterback for Notre Dame, or would a younger CJ Carr have beaten him out?

Dylan Edwards, who will suit up for Kansas this year after spending time with Colorado and Colorado State over his first 3 seasons, also did not make the list. He’s lightning in a bottle, and there’s a world where he would be in contention as a slot receiver for this Notre Dame team. But based on the movement we have seen and his intention to play the running back position, it probably would not have worked out even if he had ended up with the Fighting Irish.

For the mental health of the Notre Dame fan base, current Ole Miss quarterback Deuce Knight was also left off. Knight spent the 2025 season with the Auburn Tigers and very well could have been the heir apparent to Carr. However, he did not want to be patient and ended up decommitting from the 2025 group.

Offensive tackle Elijah Page

One of the more notable decommitments over the years came in the 2023 class from current USC offensive tackle Elijah Page. Page has dealt with some injuries over the last couple of years, but when healthy, he has flashed the upside and potential that Notre Dame saw in him as a recruit. If he were still in this class, you very well might have seen him as the starting left tackle for this Notre Dame team going into the season.

On the other side, the bookend could have been either Guerby Lambert or Will Black.

In that reality, could you have afforded to move Lambert inside to guard for a second year as a starter? That would have been an impressive offensive line from a physical perspective. However, Notre Dame is definitely not complaining about having Black and Lambert as their bookends going into the season.

Nickel defensive backs Peyton Bowen and Ivan Taylor

Notre Dame has gone to the transfer portal frequently at the nickel position over the last several years, including players like Thomas Harper, Jordan Clark, and DeVonta Smith. This season, the Irish plan to go in-house with Christian Gray moving inside and Dallas Golden as the main competition for the starting spot.

There was a reality where either Oklahoma safety Peyton Bowen or Alabama defensive back Ivan Taylor could have ended up with this team and been in contention to start at nickel. Taylor spent a lot of time in high school in the state of Florida playing the nickel position on top of playing on the boundary, while Bowen has started at nickel for Oklahoma over the last couple of years.

The secondary would be impressive with either of those players.

Once again, Notre Dame is not complaining with the deep and elite secondary it has going into the 2026 season. To put into context how well Mike Mickens recruited the back end before he left for the Baltimore Ravens this offseason, the fact that you can lose a player like Bowen and Taylor and still have inarguably the best secondary in college football is quite a statement.

Wide receiver Isiah Canion

One of the more notable losses for Notre Dame that people didn’t talk about frequently came in the 2024 class with wide receiver Isiah Canion. After committing to Notre Dame, Canion eventually opted to flip to Georgia Tech. At the time, it was all about wanting to stay closer to home. He has since transferred from Georgia Tech to the Georgia Bulldogs, where he looks to potentially start in 2026.

It was honestly just never going to work out. There was clearly the intention that he did not want to go up north, did not want to go to South Bend, Indiana. If he had stuck, however, he could very well be the starting boundary receiver for this Notre Dame team right now. At 6-4 and 215 pounds, Canion is an impressive athlete who is still just beginning to tap into his upside as a player.

Tight end Nate Roberts

The last player on the list may not necessarily be a starter for Notre Dame, but he would have been an intriguing fit in the room. Nate Roberts was originally a part of the 2025 class before eventually flipping his commitment to the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Going into the 2026 season, Notre Dame has a good group of tight ends but not a ton of proven production as pass receivers. Roberts looks like he could start for Ohio State and is expected to have a good season if he lives up to his prowess as a recruit. He may not have necessarily upgraded this team, at least in 2026, but he was an impressive recruit with a lot to like about his game.

The fact that Freeman and his staff can lose players of this caliber through the recruiting process and still field one of the most talented rosters in college football speaks volumes about how the program has recruited over the last several years.

Alos, Roberts is an elite last name.