Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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12 FEBRUARY 2025 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED NUMBERS AND QUOTES BY ERIC HANSEN 3rd I nte r r u pt i o n i n t h e Notre Dame-Southern Cal football series since it began in 1926 will take place from at least 2026-29, after the two sides failed to reach an agreement to extend it. The only previous interruptions occurred during World War II (1943-45) and the COVID- impacted season (2020). It does not behoove anybody … to schedule Notre Dame. They have such an advantage over these teams that are playing, in the Big Ten's and SEC's cases, much more difficult schedules. And now, there's this minimum bar that all Notre Dame has to do is be in the top 12, with their schedule. That's crazy." — FOX Sports college football analyst Joel Klatt The wounds are still raw from the Fight- ing Irish being snubbed for the College Football Playoff. But Marcus Freeman is recruit- ing and obtaining talent at a level that should have Notre Dame as a legitimate title contender for the next few years. This class was his mag- num opus, signing four five-stars — something Notre Dame hasn't done in decades. "The Irish shored up their secondary with the coun- try's No. 1 cornerback Khary Adams and No. 3 safety Joey O'Brien, while adding five-star edge rusher Rodney Dunham and elite tight end Ian Premer. They signed six more prospects who rank in the top-150 nationally, including two — edge Ebenezer Ewetade and offensive tackle Grayson McKeogh — who are ranked as five-star level prospects by Rivals. The bar has been raised in South Bend." — On3's Keegan Pope on Notre Dame No. 2 ranking for its 2026 class 2 Class of 2026 Notre Dame football signees — Cincinnati St. Xavier linebacker Ja'Kobe Clapper and Wyndmoor (Pa.) La Salle Col- lege High safety Joey O'Brien — were named to the 2025 National High School All-American Team by the Maxwell Football Club. A total of 34 high school players were named as All-America selec- tions for 2025. Clapper was one of four lineback- ers selected to the defense, while O'Brien was one of two honorees at the athlete position. Clapper was a two-time conference defensive player of the year at St. Xavier. He helped lead the Bombers to an Ohio Division I state runner-up fin- ish during his senior season in 2025, amassing 109 total stops with 11 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks. O'Brien, a two-way player during his prep ca- reer, was named the 2025 Pennsylvania Gatorade Player of the Year and the MaxPreps Pennsylvania Player of the Year. During his senior campaign, he helped lead the Explorers to the 2025 Pennsylva- nia 6A state championship, posting 85 catches for 1,250 yards and 18 touchdowns on offense while adding 49 tackles, 4 interceptions, 12 passes de- fended, 1 sack and 1 fumble recovery on defense. 87 All-time Associated Press All-Ameri- cans for Notre Dame — the most by any school in the first 100 years the prestigious honor has been doled out. Since 1925, nearly 2,000 men have been named AP first-team All-Americans. Junior running back Jeremiyah Love and sophomore cornerback Leonard Moore were the Irish's two first-team representatives in 2025. 6 Straight seasons at least one Notre Dame player earned consensus or unanimous All-America honors: line- backer Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah in 2020, safety Kyle Hamilton in 2021, tight end Mi- chael Mayer and defensive end Isaiah Foskey in 2022, offensive tackle Joe Alt and safety Xavier Watts in 2023, Watts again in 2024, and running back Jeremiyah Love and cornerback Leonard Moore in 2025. That six-year run of consensus honors is the best for the program since the eight-year stretch from 1987-94. 35 Different unanimous All-Americans for Notre Dame in program history after junior running back Jeremiyah Love and sophomore cornerback Leon- ard Moore both achieved that feat in 2025. Four Fighting Irish players — quarterback Frank Carideo (1929-30), quarterback Johnny Lujack (1946-47), halfback Johnny Lattner (1952-53) and defensive end Ross Browner (1976-77) — have done it twice, giving Notre Dame 39 all-time unani- mous selections. The Fighting Irish have the third- most unanimous All-Americans of any FBS program, behind only Ohio State (43) and Alabama (41). The 2025 season marked just the third time in the past 35 years the Irish had two or more student-athletes earn unanimous honors in the same year. College Football Hall of Fame inductees Raghib Ismail, Michael Stonebreaker and Chris Zorich were all unanimous selections in 1990, and current NFL standouts Joe Alt and Xavier Watts earned unanimous designation in 2023. UNDER THE DOME Had Notre Dame lived up to their word, and played us anytime, anywhere, we'd be playing them the next two years." — Southern Cal head football coach Lincoln Riley PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER