Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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90 MARCH 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED "It's a results-oriented business, but we are all about the process, too," Shrewsberry said. "It's not a one-year thing, for me. I didn't put all my eggs into one basket and say, 'This is the group.' How we have to build it here and how we have to do things here, conti- nuity is really important and develop- ment is really important. "Sometimes you gotta look at the long lens, like I have to." During an interview with Blue & Gold Illustrated in late July, Shrewsberry compared building a program through high-school recruiting — which he has long believed is the only way at Notre Dame, where taking transfers en masse is difficult — to baking a cake. Take it out too early, and it tastes, in his words, like s---. Take it out when it's done, and the product might be worth the wait. The cake is far from done. But some of the ingredients are starting to look pretty good. "You said it: I hate losing," Shrews- berry said. "But I gotta look at the long lens and say the guys that are playing for us are improving, are getting better, which should bode well for the future." The 2025-26 season was doomed when star point guard Markus Burton, the reigning ACC leading scorer, suf- fered an ankle injury Dec. 7 that has kept him out ever since. Because the injury happened early enough that a medical redshirt is still on the table, Burton and the Irish may decide that the best course is to shut him down. It was doomed even further when senior forward Kebba Njie underwent season-ending knee surgery in late Jan- uary, making Notre Dame's frontcourt even thinner than it already was. But with Burton and Njie out, several players who could be part of the team's future have stepped up. That's what Shrewsberry has to hang his hat on during a lost season, with five regular- season games to go. "It doesn't seem like much, and they probably don't glance at it or don't know, but the last five-game improve- ment, whether it was Braeden's assists, from 2 a game to 2.6." Shrewsberry said. "Cole [Certa] was at .26 assists a game in seven games, now he's at 1.8. Sir [Mo- hammed] is at 11 assists to 1 turnover the last five games. Carson [Towt]'s field goal percentage went from like 51 per- cent to like 70 percent. Guys are shoot- ing it better. Jalen [Haralson] and Brady [Koehler's] free throw percentage." Shrewsberry attacked that conversa- tion from a micro standpoint. From a macro standpoint, Certa and Braeden Shrewsberry are No. 6 and No. 3, re- spectfully, in three-point percentage among the league's highest-volume shooters. Haralson, before his own ankle injury (believed to be minor), averaged 18.4 points per game on 59.2 percent from the field over his last five. Koehler, his fellow freshman, is ahead of schedule in his own development. If Burton comes back, he and those four look like building blocks for a 2026-27 season that will ultimately de- fine Shrewsberry's tenure. "Nobody notices those things when you're losing, and they don't even no- tice it, probably," Shrewsberry said. "But it's like, you guys are doing good stuff and you are getting better. And we just wanted to focus on those little steps, because you keep adding those little steps up, then coming together, it could really be helpful." ✦ During the first two TV timeouts of Notre Dame's Valentine's Day matchup against Georgia Tech, Shrewsberry made sure to check on sophomore guard Cole Certa. Certa had been sick earlier in the week and was listed as probable on the official injury report, but there was no world in which he wouldn't play. And after those first two timeouts, Shrewsberry dropped the subject. "I'm like, 'I don't care anymore," Shrewsberry said. "You're gonna play the whole game." Certa was unconscious at Purcell Pavilion, scoring a career-high 37 points. He tied Matt Farrell (versus Boston College in 2018) for the second-most points a Notre Dame player has scored in an ACC game, behind only Markus Burton (versus Cal in 2025) with 43. He powered the Irish to an 89-74 victory over the Yellow Jackets, ending a five-game losing streak. He did indeed play the whole game, too. Haralson (ankle) was ruled out for Saturday's game about 90 minutes before tip-off. With their only consistent interior scorer out, the Irish knew they would have to beat Georgia Tech from beyond the arc. In the first half alone, Notre Dame shot 11 of 19 (57.9 percent) from three- point range. For the game, the Irish shot 14 of 28 (50.0 percent). The catalyst was Certa, who went 7 of 11 on three-point attempts. Braeden Shrewsberry came out of the gates hot as well, hitting 4 three- pointers in the first half and finishing the game with 20 points. He and Certa had to be Notre Dame's primary sources of offense, and they did not disappoint. "Me and Braeden talk before every game," Certa said. "Just like, 'Get 'em up. Get good shots up.' I wasn't worried at all. We have good players on this team. Next-man-up mentality." Certa has become a killer in his second season out of Le Roy, Ill. He av- eraged 21.0 points over the Irish's six games from Jan. 27 to Feb. 14. He made shots in transition, with a hand in his face, off balance, from the logo, whatever. It often didn't matter what the Yellow Jackets did on defense. Notre Dame's breakout player would not be denied. — Jack Soble 2025-26 NOTRE DAME SCHEDULE (12-14 OVERALL, 3-10 ACC) Date Opponent (TV) Time (ET)/Result Nov. 3 LIU Brooklyn W, 89-67 Nov. 7 Detroit Mercy W, 102-70 Nov. 11 Eastern Illinois W, 78-58 Nov. 16 at Ohio State L, 64-63 Nov. 19 Bellarmine W, 86-79 Nov. 24 vs. Kansas+ L, 71-61 Nov. 25 vs. Rutgers+ W, 68-63 Nov. 26 vs. Houston+ L, 66-56 Dec. 2 Missouri^ W, 76-71 Dec. 5 at TCU W, 87-85 (OT) Dec. 10 Idaho W, 80-65 Dec. 13 Evansville W, 82-58 Dec. 21 Purdue Fort Wayne L, 72-69 Dec. 30 at Stanford* W, 47-40 Jan. 2 at California* L, 72-71 Jan. 10 Clemson* L, 76-61 Jan. 13 Miami* L, 81-69 Jan. 17 at Virginia Tech* L, 89-76 Jan. 21 at North Carolina* L, 91-69 Jan. 24 Boston College* W, 68-64 Jan. 27 Virginia* L, 100-97 (2OT) Jan. 31 at Syracuse* L, 86-72 Feb. 4 at Louisville* L, 76-65 Feb. 7 Florida State* L, 82-79 Feb. 10 at SMU* L, 89-81 Feb. 14 Georgia Tech* W, 89-74 Feb. 21 at Pittsburgh* (ACCN) 2 p.m. Feb. 24 Duke* (ESPN) 7 p.m. Feb. 28 NC State* (The CW) 12 p.m. March 4 Stanford* (ESPNU) 9 p.m. March 7 at Boston College* (ESPNU) 12 p.m. + Players Era Championship in Las Vegas; ^ ACC/ SEC Challenge; * ACC Game Cole Certa Explodes For 37 Points In Win Over Georgia Tech