Notre Dame Fighting Irish
· 2026-06-29
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are set to dominate the 2026 season with their talented linebacker room.
The Irish linebacker room is ranked as the No. 1 LB unit in the country by Phil Steele and No. 2 overall by Georgia.
The unit is led by senior team captain Drayk Bowen, who has been a good football player for Notre Dame the last two seasons.
Drayk Bowen had 67 tackles, 4.5 TFL, 3.5 sacks, 4 break ups, 17 pressures in 585 snaps.
Jaiden Ausberry had 51 tackles, 4.0 TFL, 2.0 sacks, 1 FF, 13 pressures in 437 snaps.
The Irish will face the Wisconsin Badgers on 2026-09-06.
First-year position coach Brian Jean-Mary arrives with a strong reputation as a developer of talent.
He will have to figure out how to properly utilize all of the talent in the room.
The players will have to focus on Marcus Freeman's mantra of "team glory in front of yourself."
The Irish linebackers got off to a slow start in 2025 but improved as the season progressed.
In the first six games, the top five linebackers made 7.0 tackles for loss, had 4.5 tackles for loss and had 26 pressures.
In the final six games, the same linebackers had 17.0 tackles for loss, 9.0 sacks and 44 pressures.
The expectation is that this group will play more like the unit seen in the final six games, but better.
All five of the top linebackers in the rotation from last season return, and while they have a new position coach, the defensive system they are playing in is the same.
This group should be even better executing the system than seen a season ago, which should result in more consistent play and more impactful play.
The Irish linebackers are expected to be the deepest and most talented unit in the country.
Drayk Bowen is expected to have a big season, and the Irish are looking forward to seeing what he can do.
The Irish will look to build on their strong linebacker play as they head into the 2026 season.