Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1544292
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM APRIL/MAY 2026 47 That's what needs to happen in the immediate future. For the long term, though, Notre Dame must decide if Shrewsberry is the coach it wants. And if he is, it needs to give him a chance to succeed. Right now, he does not have one. Notre Dame's annual roster budget is well within the bottom third of the ACC. A Big Ten head coach recently told On3's Joe Tipton, "If you're under $12 million in NIL, you're in trouble." The Irish are beyond "in trouble." The Irish are operating like a mid-major. Shrewsberry is obviously not blame- less, either. The results from his first three seasons — totaling 41-56 overall and 19-39 ACC records — have not in- spired confidence from potential NIL donors that their money will be well spent. Every part of the operation de- serves blame for the current state of the program, which is miles away from even discussing the NCAA Tournament. "Change always happens," Shrews- berry said back in March. "There's no program in America where there's not going to be any change at the end of the season. We'll handle it when we get to it." Notre Dame's roster changed, but not by choice. The Irish are hurtling toward a fifth straight losing season if the pro- gram doesn't change, too. ✦ Roster Reset: Big Three Guards Gone; Brady Koehler Stays Notre Dame lost six total players to the transfer portal, and they can be placed into two groups. First came sophomore guard Sir Mohammed, sophomore forward Garrett Sundra and freshman forward Ryder Frost. They didn't have the 2025-26 seasons that they or the Irish wanted, and a change of scenery was likely best for all parties. Then came freshman guard Jalen Haralson, junior guard Markus Burton and sophomore guard Cole Certa. The best player in each of head coach Micah Shrewsberry's first three freshman classes left the building. Burton averaged 19.1 points per game in 69 outings with the Irish over three seasons, playing his final game in a blue-and-gold uniform Dec. 7 due to an ankle injury. The Mishawaka native who represented the South Bend area played his best basketball before he went down. Haralson was the crown jewel of Shrewsberry's work on the recruiting trail, entering Notre Dame as the No. 20 player in the 2025 class. The versatile, 6-foot-7 stalwart put up 16.2 points per game as a freshman, despite playing out of position (he was the primary point guard with Burton out) most of the season. Certa, meanwhile, was the success story of Notre Dame's failed 2025-26 season. He broke out, blos- soming from a seldom-used freshman to a 12.8 point-per-game player capable of dropping 30 three separate times in ACC play. The sharpshooter made 91 three-pointers while shooting 36.7 percent from downtown. Notre Dame will craft a new roster around the one key building block who decided to stay: freshman forward Brady Koehler, whom the Irish believe has NBA potential. He put up 5.6 points per game as a freshman and led the Irish in blocks, despite averaging only 16.0 minutes as he adjusted to the college game. "Wait 'til he's 225 pounds and has the physicality," strength coach Jon Sanderson told BGI in March. "You can kind of see it, with his length and his ability to put the ball on the floor and move it, pass it, hit open shots. He's an exciting player." Koehler is a start. But without significant transfer portal investment around him, he won't be enough. Time will tell if the Irish can put the requisite pieces in place. — Jack Soble After three prolific but injury-plagued seasons, hometown kid Markus Burton — and five others — are leaving Notre Dame. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER 2025-26 NOTRE DAME RESULTS (13-18 OVERALL, 4-14 ACC) Date Opponent (TV) 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* L, 73-68 Feb. 24 Duke* L, 100-56 Feb. 28 NC State* W, 96-90 (OT) March 4 Stanford* L, 86-78 March 7 at Boston College* L, 77-69 + Players Era Championship in Las Vegas; ^ ACC/SEC Challenge; * ACC Game