Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 7, 2026 57 BY TODD D. BURLAGE V eteran Irish midfielder Nolan Spicer is one of the fortunate Notre Dame student-athletes who made their tran- sition from high school to college look almost impossibly seamless. But considering Spicer spent his high school years at national soccer and scholastic powerhouse Saint Ig- natius High School in Cleveland, he came to Notre Dame plug-and-play ready in 2023, and then some. During his four years at Saint Ignatius, Spicer became a high school All-American as a senior in 2022. He also earned Ohio Boys Soccer Gatorade Player of the Year honors twice, and won four Ohio state championships with a program that has claimed 14 overall state titles and been named national champions seven times. "Every day [at Saint Ignatius], you're surrounded by great players, surrounded by great coaches," Spicer recalled. "You're pushed every single day to com- pete and be at your best. And when you do that every single day, it just adds up over time. Doing that for four years def- initely helped me become prepared to come in and play at Notre Dame." Spicer seized his opportunities as a freshman in 2023 and earned 20 appear- ances, six starts and All-ACC Freshman Team honors on a veteran Notre Dame squad that returned 10 starters. "Coming in, I knew that I was tal- ented enough to play right away, but you just never really know," said Spicer, who tallied 6 points his rookie season (1 goal, 4 assists) and even earned a start- ing spot in the College Cup semifinal win over Oregon State. "What it is all about as a young player is taking your opportunities when they come because you only get so many. And I just thought I did a good job with that." Spicer made 13 starts and scored 8 points (3 goals, 2 assists) as a sophomore in 2024. Then, the Bay Village, Ohio, native enjoyed his breakout season as a junior in 2025, when he earned third- team All-ACC honors after leading Notre Dame with 7 assists and finishing second with 11 points. Through 14 games this season, Spicer had posted modest production with 2 goals and 1 assist on a team that's domi- nated statistically by freshman standouts Tristan Tropeano and Michael Capretto. However, Spicer is more worried about the team than statistics. The Irish will head into the ACC Tournament Nov. 4 still on the NCAA Champion- ship selection bubble, so this is no time to worry about personal pursuits. "I would say we are in a great spot," said Spicer, confident that the selection metrics suggest that, barring a late- season collapse, Notre Dame remains in line for one of the 25 NCAA Tourna- ment at-large bids. "We've had some big wins. I think we are sitting in a really good spot right now with the tourna- ment coming here soon." ✦ Irish Captain Nolan Spicer Defines Steadiness, Reliability N O T R E D A M E S P O R T S Spicer enjoyed his breakout season as a junior in 2025, when he earned third-team All-ACC honors after leading Notre Dame with 7 assists and fin- ishing second with 11 points. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS Irish Roundup CROSS COUNTRY Both teams competed in the ACC Championships Oct. 30 at Blacksburg, Va. … The No. 8-ranked women finished sixth out of 18 teams, while the No. 15 men came in fourth out of 17 teams. MEN'S GOLF Wrapped up its fall slate by placing 13th with a 27-over-par 891 in the Williams Cup Oct. 18-20 in Wilmington, N.C. WOMEN'S GOLF Finished its fall slate with a 2-under-par 862 for a fourth-place showing in the Jim West Challenge Oct. 18-19 in San Marcos, Texas. HOCKEY (2-4 OVERALL, 0-0 BIG TEN) Dropped a pair of games against No. 6 Western Michigan, losing 6-1 Oct. 16 in Kalamazoo, Mich., and 4-0 Oct. 17 in South Bend … Also lost twice to No. 20 Merrimack Oct. 23-24 in South Bend, falling 2-1 in overtime and 6-3. MEN'S SOCCER (7-5-3 OVERALL, 4-4-0 ACC) Blanked Boston College 2-0 Oct. 17 at Alumni Stadium … Suffered a 2-1 setback at No. 10 Louisville Oct. 25. WOMEN'S SOCCER (8-1-6 OVERALL, 6-1-1 ACC) The No. 17 Fighting Irish notched a 2-0 win at No. 15 Florida State Oct. 24 … Notched a 2-1 victory at Cal Oct. 29. SWIMMING & DIVING (MEN 0-3, WOMEN 0-3) Opened the season at Wisconsin Oct. 17, with the men losing 160-140 and the women falling 202-95 … Both the men (188-111) and women (213-83) were defeated by Louisville Oct. 22 in South Bend … The two squads then traveled to Northwestern Oct. 23, with the men falling 186-114 and the women losing 180-120. VOLLEYBALL (4-15 OVERALL, 1-9 ACC) Lost a pair of home matches, falling 3-0 to No. 23 North Carolina Oct. 16 and 3-2 to Duke Oct. 18 … Fell 3-1 at Miami Oct. 23 and 3-0 at Florida State Oct. 25.