Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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14 OCT. 3, 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED UNDER THE DOME Daelen Ackley — Cross Country The fifth-year from El Do- rado Springs, Mo., paced a strong effort to open the 2026 season for the No. 14 Irish when he won the indi- vidual title in the 2026 Na- tional Catholic Invitational Sept. 18 in South Bend. Ackley covered the 8,000-meter course at Notre Dame's Burke Golf Course in 23:19.4 to pace a group of Notre Dame runners who finished first through sixth in the race for a decisive team victory in the 16-team event. Nico Bartlett — Soccer The senior midfielder Bloomingdale, Ill., scored the game-winning goal in a 3-1 road win for No. 20 Notre Dame over No. 1 Stanford Sept. 20 at Cagan Stadium in Palo, Alto, Calif. Bartlett broke a 1-1 tie seconds into the second half, scoring from the rebound after Stevie Dunphy's shot struck the post. His 46th-minute goal gave the Irish a 2-1 lead in what became Notre Dame's third-ever win over a top-ranked opponent. Chloe Huyler — Cross Country The sophomore from L a k e O s w e g o , O r e . , opened the season strong for the No. 6 Fighting Irish when she won the indi- vidual title at the 2026 Na- tional Catholic Invitational Sept. 18 at South Bend. Huyler covered the 5,000-meter course at Notre Dame's Burke Golf Course in 16:45.4 to pace a group of Irish runners that finished first through eighth for a decisive team vic- tory in the 15-team event. Sonoma Kasica — Soccer The junior goalkeeper from St. Petersburg, Fla., kept No. 17 Notre Dame u n b e ate n t h i s s e a s o n when she recorded 6 saves and tallied her second shutout of the season in a 4-0 home win over Boston College Sept. 18 at Alumni Stadium. Through Sept. 21, Kasica led the ACC with 4.50 saves per game and ranked third in the league with 27 total saves. TOP TOP OF THE CLASS OF THE CLASS Irish student-athletes excelling on the field and in the classroom ✦ GIMME FIVE Marcus Freeman is never satisfied, even with a top-five scoring defense. "After the fake punt, we give up the field goal," Freeman said on the "Wake Up the Echoes" podcast the week after Notre Dame defeated Michigan State 27-10. "And then that next drive, they'll tell you the two worst plays of the game were the big-play pass and the next play where the quarterback ran it in." After a comfortable (if slightly unsatisfying) win like that, Freeman will generally lead with the bad before he goes into the good. And there was a whole lot of good from the Irish defense against the Spartans, just as there was against the Owls and Badgers. "Other than those two plays, they played lights out," Freeman said. It was expected, but opposing offenses have rarely kept the lights on against Notre Dame's defense through the first quarter of the regular season. Through three weeks, the Irish boasted the No. 4 scoring defense in the FBS, tied with Oklahoma at 7.7 opponent points per game. Why? It starts with two things: stopping the run and creating turnovers. The Irish were No. 1 in forced turnovers among Power Four schools through Week 3 with 8. They're fourth in opponent yards per carry at 1.90, behind just LSU, Georgia and Alabama. To the extent that Notre Dame's pass efficiency defense numbers are pedestrian — it ranks 34th nationally — it's because of (a) the explosive plays it allowed against Michigan and Wisconsin and (b) a reputation that may precede it. Even removing Rice, a triple-option team, 24.0 opponent pass attempts per game against the Spartans and Badgers would rank 20th in the nation — and teams that are trailing the entire game typically pass more. Opponents' reluctance to pass might inflate their efficiency numbers against Notre Dame — as volume rises, efficiency typi- cally declines — but it has not helped them score. Clean up the big plays and get some help from the offense and special teams — 13 of Notre Dame's 23 points allowed have come on drives that started at midfield or beyond — and the fourth- ranked scoring defense in college football can be even better moving forward. — Jack Soble CHARTING THE IRISH CARRYING THE LOAD UNDER MARCUS FREEMAN Sophomore running back Nolan James Jr. handled more rushing attempts in Notre Dame's 27-10 victory over Michigan State than Jeremiyah Love, Jadarian Price or Audric Estimé logged in a single game through- out their Notre Dame careers. The 26 carries for James were the most for an Irish running back since Logan Diggs rushed 28 times against UNLV in the 2022 season. Diggs, who rushed for 130 yards in that 44-21 win against UNLV Oct. 22, holds the record for most individual carries under Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman. A Notre Dame player has reached 20 rushing attempts in a game just 12 times since Freeman took over the program in December 2021. All 12 of those performances belong to running backs. Notre Dame's leading carrier, in terms of rushing attempts, has averaged fewer than 18 carries per game in each of Freeman's four full seasons as head coach: 13.8 for Diggs in 2022, 17.5 for Estimé in 2023, 11.5 for Leonard in 2024 and 16.6 for Love in 2025. Through the first three games of the season, Notre Dame's top two running backs — James and junior Aneyas Williams — averaged 13.0 and 12.7 carries per game, respectively. — Tyler James MOST INDIVIDUAL RUSHING ATTEMPTS IN A GAME DURING FREEMAN ERA Rk. Player Carries Yards Opponent Season 1. Logan Diggs 28 130 UNLV 2022 2. Nolan James Jr. 26 121 Michigan State 2026 3. Audric Estimé 25 238 Stanford 2023 4. Jeremiyah Love 24 228 Southern Cal 2025 5. Jeremiyah Love 23 147 Pittsburgh 2025 Jeremiyah Love 23 94 Texas A&M 2025 7. Audric Estimé 22 115 Wake Forest 2023 Audric Estimé 22 95 Southern Cal 2023 9. Audric Estimé 20 176 Central Michigan 2023 Audric Estimé 20 123 Syracuse 2022 Aneyas Williams 20 90 Wisconsin 2026 Logan Diggs 20 85 Syracuse 2022 FBS SCORING DEFENSE RANKINGS Through Week 3 Rk. School PPG 1. Iowa 4.3 2. Indiana 5.3 3. Penn State 7.3 4. Notre Dame 7.7 Oklahoma 7.7 Through three weeks, Notre Dame was tied for fourth in the nation in scoring defense (7.7 points allowed per game). PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER