Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1544292
10 APRIL/MAY 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS NUMBERS AND QUOTES BY STEVE DOWNEY UNDER THE DOME 44 Was Notre Dame men's basket- ball's margin of defeat (100-56) against Duke Feb. 24 en route to a final record of 13-18 (4-14 ACC, no postseason tournament). It was the Fighting Irish's worst home loss since losing by 39 points (97-58) against even- tual national champion Kentucky on Feb. 12, 1996. Notre Dame's largest loss at home in program history was a 56-point defeat (64-8) at the hands of Chicago First Regiment — a prestigious military unit and social organization based in Chicago during the late 19th century — in the very first game in program history on Jan. 29, 1898. The Irish finished that season with a 1-2 record, losing 19-13 to the Chicago Clybournes on Feb. 5, 1898, before beating Marion (Ind.) YMCA 15-12 on Feb. 12, 1898. It's an elite-level class. It's the type of class that makes you feel like the program's first national title since 1988 is right around the cor- ner, which should (maybe) ease the disappoint- ment of missing this year's CFP. If [Marcus] Free- man treats being told no by the CFP Committee the way he treated being told no by previous five- star prospects, then it's a downright certainty." — Ari Wasserman of On3 10 10 Football Bowl Subdivision teams that lost zero starters in this year 's portal: Arizona, Army, BYU, Miami, Notre Dame, Oregon, SMU, Tem- ple, Texas Tech and Virginia Tech. 4 Games this season for Notre Dame junior point guard Hannah Hidalgo in which she notched at least 30 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals after she garnered lines of 30, 10, 7 and 5 in a 65-62 upset at No. 10-ranked Louisville March 1 and 31, 11, 7 and 10 in a 67-64 victory versus No. 2 seed Vanderbilt March 27. All the other Division I women's basketball play- ers combined to have two such games this season. The performance against Vanderbilt made Hidalgo just the third Irish player with a triple-double in the Big Dance and only the second player in NCAA Tournament history with a triple-double that in- cluded steals. 25. 5.3 + 3 + 6. 6.9 + 9 + 5. 5.6 + 6 + 5. 5.2 2 Were Notre Dame junior point guard Hannah Hidalgo's season averages in points, rebounds, steals and assists in 2025-26. That made her the first Division I college basketball player this century (since 1999-2000) — men or women — to average at least 25 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals per game over the course of an entire season. Hidalgo played her best at the end of the season, scoring 20 or more points in each of her last 11 games while averaging 26.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, 6.0 steals and 5.9 assists per game. Not one of the best, I think she is the best [point guard in the country]. … It's rare that you find a player that is involved in every single play. To the point where you, like, have to, whoever she's guarding, you have to go hide them some place hoping she's not involved in that play. And she still manages to be involved in the play, somehow, some way. … "I asked her after the game if she was old enough to go pro and she said, 'No, I want one more shot at you guys.'" — UConn head coach Geno Auriemma on Notre Dame junior point guard Hannah Hidalgo after his team knocked off the Irish 70-52 in the Elite Eight 29 Steals for Hannah Hidalgo in the NCAA Tournament during the Fight- ing Irish's run to the Elite Eight as a No. 6 seed, which is a new record. The previous mark was 23, which she eclipsed in just her third tournament contest. Hidalgo had 8 steals in the first round against No. 11 Fairfield, 8 versus No. 3 Ohio State in the second round, 10 against No. 2 Vanderbilt in the Sweet 16 (tied for the second most in an NCAA Tournament game since 1988) and then 3 versus No. 1 Connecticut in the Elite Eight. 1 Notre Dame basketball player — male or female — has been named the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year since its in- ception in 2018: HANNAH HIDALGO in 2026. The junior point guard averaged 5.6 steals per game and broke the single-season school and NCAA records for steals with 202. She is the first men's or women's college player to eclipse 200 thefts in a single season since steals became an official stat in 1988. The season of hell continues." — Notre Dame head men's basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry after losing 100-56 to Duke and suffering an Achilles injury patrolling the sidelines during the beatdown Feb. 24