Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1538217
PUBLISHER'S NOTE Similar to the seismic shifts occurring in the college football landscape in the past couple years, we're also undergoing some exciting changes at Blue & Gold Illustrated. As a result of our parent company On3's acquisition of and merger with Rivals on July 1, BGI is pleased to welcome two veteran writers from the Notre Dame football beat — Eric Hansen and Tyler James. They join our existing talented crew — Mike Singer, Ty Horka, Jack Soble, Kyle Kelly, Todd Burlage and managing editor Steve Downey — in covering the Fighting Irish for your reading enjoyment. Hansen and James, most recently co-publishers of InsideNDsports.com and formerly reporters with the South Bend Tribune, each have a long history of journalistic excel- lence. We're thrilled they'll be adding their insights, analysis and voices to our magazine pages as well as on our subscription site, BlueandGold.com, which is part of the On3 network. This also will mark the end of an era. We are (mostly) retiring Lou Somogyi's "Best of the Fifth Quarter" column — we've been publishing reprints of his work ever since his untimely death in April 2021. Doing so will create space for us to introduce two new opinion columns from Eric ("The Deep Read") and Tyler ("First And Last"), and we think Lou would agree with this change. His name still sits atop our masthead, and his spirit and passion for covering Notre Dame athletics remains the gold standard for all of us at BGI. We will save future reprints of his most notable "Fifth Quarter" columns in reserve for special moments, and seasons that warrant his unmatched words of wisdom. Think 1988. It may or may not be this year, but it's coming. Just like the Irish football program, we believe the future is bright for Blue & Gold Il- lustrated. We're so glad to have you with us on this journey. Turn the page and enjoy our coverage previewing the 2025 season as we count down the days and hours till kickoff. Go Irish! Mark Panus Publisher BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM PRESEASON 2025 3 PRESEASON 2025 ✦ VOL. 44, ISSUE 19 IN MEMORY OF Lou Somogyi, Editor 1985-2021 MANAGING EDITOR Steve Downey CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Stu Coman, Matt Herb, Cathy Jones, Chris Riffer S TAFF WRITERS Eric Hansen, Tyler Horka, Tyler James, Jack Soble RE CRUITING REPORTERS Mike Singer, Kyle Kelly CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Todd D. Burlage, Jim Lefebvre PHOTOGRAPHY Michael Miller, Chad Weaver COVER PHOTOS Michael Miller, Chad Weaver DESIGN Jeanette Blankenship, Chris Miller ✦ ✦ ✦ PUBLISHER Mark Panus BUSINESS ANALYST Sarah Boone CIRCULATION Beverly Taylor ADVERTISING SALES Maria Taustine (502) 552-4390 CUS TOMER SERVICE Lauren Gordon, Shelby Cragg, Cathy Jones (800) 421-7751 ✦ ✦ ✦ BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED (ISSN 0746-2557) is published 18 times annually — weekly Sept.-Dec. and monthly Jan.-Aug. (no issues in February, June and July) — by Coman Publishing Co., a division of On3 Media, Inc., located at 905 W. Main St., Suite 24F, Durham, NC 27701 (www.comanpub.com). A one-year (18 issues) subscription is $74.95. B LUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED is printed by The Papers in Milford, Ind. Postmaster: Send address changes to Blue & Gold Illustrated, P.O. Box 2331, Durham, NC 27702. Periodical postage paid at Durham, NC 27702 and additional offices. For advertising or subscription information call 1-919-688-0218 or write B LU E & G O L D ILLUSTRATED, P.O. Box 2331, Durham, NC 27702. Aug. 31 at Miami (Fla.) Sept. 13 Texas A&M Sept. 20 Purdue Sept. 27 at Arkansas Oct. 4 Boise State Oct. 11 NC State Oct. 18 USC Nov. 1 at Boston College Nov. 8 Navy Nov. 15 at Pittsburgh Nov. 22 Syracuse Nov. 29 at Stanford 2025 NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL SCHEDULE ✦ INSIDE THIS ISSUE Upon Further Review ✦ Todd D. Burlage ......... 4 Golden Gamut ✦ Tyler Horka ........................... 5 Fan Forum ......................................................... 6 Under The Dome ............................................... 8 Charles Jagusah Injury ..................................... 16 Fall Camp Offense Overview ........................... 18 Fall Camp Defense Overview ........................... 21 BGI's Top 25 for 2025 ....................................... 24 Senior Class Review ......................................... 30 Kevin Bauman .................................................. 34 Freshman Projections ...................................... 36 10 Freshman Surprises .................................... 38 Miami Preview ................................................. 42 Miami and Notre Dame Rosters ...................... 49 Opponent On Deck: Texas A&M ...................... 51 Football Recruiting .......................................... 52 Football Commit Profiles ................................. 54 Recruiting Roundup/2026 Master List .............. 69 Blue & Gold Marketplace ................................ 71 Men's Basketball .............................................. 72 Women's Basketball ........................................ 73 2024-25 In Review ........................................... 74 ND Sports: Fall Preview ................................... 78 Irish Echoes ✦ Jim Lefebvre ........................... 80 Irish In The Pros ............................................... 82 First And Last ✦ Tyler James .......................... 84 Off The Dome ✦ Jack Soble............................ 85 The Deep Read ✦ Eric Hansen ....................... 86 PUBLICATION SCHEDULE Mail Date Issue Focus Aug. 8 44-19 Miami (Fla.) preview Sept. 2 45-1 Texas A&M preview Sept. 15 45-2 Purdue preview Sept. 22 45-3 Arkansas preview Sept. 29 45-4 Boise State preview Oct. 6 45-5 NC State preview Oct. 14 45-6 USC preview Oct. 20 45-7 Boston College preview Nov. 3 45-8 Navy preview Nov. 10 45-9 Pitt preview Nov. 17 45-10 Syracuse preview Nov. 24 45-11 Stanford preview Dec. 1 45-12 Regular-season recap Dec. 11 45-13 CFP first-round (OR bowl game) preview Dec. 22* TBA CFP quarterfinal preview Jan. 3* TBA CFP semifinal preview Jan. 10 45-14 CFP championship preview OR bowl recap NEXT issue in green; all dates subject to change *Special edition ONLY if Notre Dame advances