Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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38 APRIL/MAY 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY KYLE KELLY J ordan Halter knows what a champi- onship-caliber Notre Dame football program looks like. Halter, the father of current Fight- ing Irish offensive line commit James Halter, played under the late Lou Holtz from 1989-93. He was a reserve of- fensive lineman during one of the pro- gram's most triumphant runs in college football's modern era. During those five years, Notre Dame compiled a 52-9-1 record, had three consecutive double-digit win seasons, won four New Year's Six bowl games and nearly captured the national cham- pionship in 1993. Until Marcus Freeman arrived, that same level of success since then had only been a flash in the pan. Tyrone Willingham and Charlie Weis each won 10 games once, and Holtz's successor, Bob Davie, never did. Brian Kelly hit the mark in Year 3 when Notre Dame reached the national title game during the 2012 season. Still, it took him 10 years to achieve a third straight cam- paign of 10 wins or more. Freeman has reached those milestones faster than his predecessors and, thanks to his recruiting success, is poised to sustain it. From Halter's perspective, that success is no coincidence: the way Freeman recruits closely mirrors the blueprint Holtz used decades ago. "What's so familiar to me now with Coach Freeman is it just feels very simi- lar to how Coach Holtz did it," Halter told Blue & Gold Illustrated. "He didn't shy away from, 'This place is different. It's going to be hard. It's not for every- one. Delayed gratification.' "A lot of what Coach Freeman is talk- ing about is very familiar to me because that's how Coach Holtz did the recruit- ing. And he really leaned into what the differences are. And it's not a negative. You don't have to talk around it. That appealed to me. And I think you can see the same thing happening today." FREEMAN IS BRINGING NOTRE DAME BACK TO HOLTZ-ERA PROMINENCE In his third season, Freeman guided Notre Dame to its first New Year's Six bowl victory since January 1994, when Halter's career concluded. The Irish added Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl victories during their run through the reshaped 12-team College Football Playoff, which ended with a national championship game appearance. Unlike when Alabama battered the Irish 42-14 in 2012, Notre Dame's effort in the title game during the 2024 season — a 34-23 loss to Ohio State — proved the program can compete with college football's giants. Freeman just secured his third consec- utive double-digit win season, was on the brink of returning to the CFP and signed the No. 2 recruiting class in the 2026 cycle. Notre Dame football is starting to resemble the golden years of the Holtz era. "Up until Marcus came along, where they could have beaten Ohio State, was the first time they've proved to be like Lou Holtz or Ara Parseghian," longtime national recruiting analyst Tom Lem- ming told Blue & Gold Illustrated. "Brian Kelly was a good coach, but never re- ally reached the realm of being an impact team. And it was all due to recruiting." This past recruiting cycle, Notre Dame gave itself its best shot in decades at producing multiple impact players. According to Rivals, the Irish signed five five-star recruits in the 2026 class: offensive tackle Grayson McKeogh, edge rusher Rodney Dunham, cornerback Khary Adams, safety Joey O'Brien and tight end Ian Premer. Cornerback Ayden Pouncey finished just two spots away from reaching that mark as the No. 34 overall player in the class. Notre Dame's five five-star recruits in 2026 are the most in any class in the Rivals era, which dates to 2002. It is the primary reason the Irish finished with the No. 2 class, their best since 1990. According to Lemming, Notre Dame had the No. 1 classes from 1988 to 1990. "Marcus, for a young guy, has his fin- ger on the pulse of recruiting. He knows what it takes," Lemming said. "I talked to Pete Carroll, Nick Saban, Urban Meyer, Mack Brown, Phil Fulmer — all Marcus Freeman Is Building A Lou Holtz-Like Culture At Notre Dame F O O T B A L L RECRUITING Freeman has leaned into what makes Notre Dame great and has raised the level of recruiting not seen since the Holtz era. PHOTO COURTESY HOLTZ'S HEROES