Predicting the Notre Dame defensive line depth chart following the transfer portal addition of former Pitt DT Francis Brewu
An early look at the Notre Dame defensive line depth chart as the transfer portal period reaches the end.
Notre Dame received a massive commitment on Tuesday from former Pitt defensive tackle Francis Brewu. He was a player that head coach Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish staff are very high on. With his past relationship with new defensive line coach Charlie Partridge, as well as his overall talent, the 6-2, 280-pound defensive tackle became a big priority for the program.
There is still a chance that Notre Dame tries to add one more talented defensive tackle, and former Oregon standout Tionne Gray is the player to keep a close eye on. The 6-6, 336-pound behemoth is expected to visit South Bend on Thursday. Depending on how that visit goes, it will become apparent quickly whether the fit makes sense.
With Brewu in the fold, the Irish gain a really intriguing undersized defensive tackle who has some unique alignment versatility. While his body type might say a pure 3 technique, the Ohio native actually has experience playing some multiple alignments. Brewu quickly becomes one of the more interesting players on Chris Ash’s defense.
Francis Brewu’s career background
Brewu was originally considered to be a consensus three-star player by each of the major recruiting platforms coming out of the 2024 class. He ended up ranked as the No. 481 overall player, the No. 56 defensive lineman, and the No. 20 player from the state of Ohio in the 2024 recruiting class, according to the 247 Sports Composite ranking. That Columbus (Oh.) Thomas Worthington standout ended up as the second-highest rated player in the class for the Panthers.
Despite those somewhat modest recruiting rankings, the Ohio native did have some impressive options on the table. Some of Brewu’s top offers included Miami, Iowa State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Boston College, Cincinnati, Minnesota, Northwestern, and Duke, among many others. The offer list will be even better this time around.
In two seasons with the Panthers, Brewu has developed into one of the defensive linemen in the ACC conference. During that stretch, the talented defender managed to record 42 total tackles, 9.5 sacks, 3.5 sacks, and a forced fumble. There is even more talent to continue tapping into as he moves into the future.
Projected defensive line depth chart
There are a couple of notes to consider when talking about the defensive line group in 2026. The first is that there is still a chance that defensive tackle Jason Onye returns to Notre Dame in 2026. He is working through the appeal process with the NCAA right now, and there is an expectation that there could be some sort of resolution in the future. Onye would play a big role next season if he returns.
If the aforementioned Gray also opts for the Irish, he would instantly be a part of the rotation. While the defensive tackle group is already better, there’s a chance this becomes a really impressive position over the next couple of weeks.
Here’s what I would project that defensive line group to look like today.
First team
DE: Boubacar Traore (RS Jr.)
DT: Armel Mukam (RS Jr.)
NT: Francis Brewu (Jr.)
DE: Bryce Young (Jr.)
Second team
DE: Loghan Thomas (Jr.)
DT: Christopher Burgess (RS Fr.)
NT: Elijah Hughes (Sr.)
DE: Keon Keeley (RS Jr.)
Third team
DE: Dominik Hulak (RS Fr.)
DT: Cole Mullins (RS So.)
NT: Sean Sevillano (RS So.)
DE: Rodney Dunham (Fr.)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish News
Notre Dame football set to host transfer portal behemoth who would fill the biggest need for the Fighting Irish
Notre Dame set to host former Oregon defensive tackle Tionne Gray, the potential missing link for the Irish defense.
