JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat | April 9, 2026 | 4/9/2026

Notre Dame Football Live Chat | April 9, 2026

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Eric Hansen

That's going to do it for today. Thanks for all the great question. We'll be back to do it all over again next Thursday at noon ET.

3:04

Cassidy, you question didn't come through, so if you had one, hit me up next week, and I'll be glad to answer it.

Guest

3:03

Cassidy Grand Rapids (by way of Niles MI)

Eric Hansen

3:03

Forced? They would be contractually obligated to join the ACC if they went all in for football. If they found an outclause, the Big Ten would seem to make the most sense for all sports, with a large enough footprint that it now has a national stage.

Irishcajun50

3:01

If Notre Dame is forced into a conference which one makes the most sense to join?

Eric Hansen

3:01

Skip. I don't mind wandering out of my lane a little bit, but this isn't even on the same road for me. I don't cover the men's team and it overlaps my football and WBB commitments. I have not done the deep dive research on this, so I couldn't tell you what the commitment level is. What I can see as you see, something is broken. We've got a great team of MBB beat writers in Jack Soble and Tyler james, so I think you'd get a much better perspective from them. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful.

skip - Houston

2:58

The state of the Notre Dame men’s basketball program is embarrassing. It is analogous to UConn except in reverse. One of our two major men’s sports programs is fully supported while the other is essentially ignored. Some schools, such as Michigan, fully support both.

Question: how do you apportion blame among the administration in its roster budget/facilities, our NIL supporters and the coaching staff? Thank you.

Eric Hansen

2:58

Thanks Penny! I think Cass Prosper would have benefitted from another year, but I think he game remains on an upward trajectory. She has always fashioned herself as a guard, but having to play more forward and even some center this year helped her game. He family is very basketball-savvy and did a lot of research, so this wasn't a decision that was made lightly. And financially, she might be losing money next year, but I do agree with your assessment. She really could have boosted her stock with another year of college ball.

Penny, Adrian, Michigan

Sorry, sent before I asked my question. What is your take on Cass Prosper declaring for the WNBA draft? I think she should have stayed another year.

2:55

Hi Eric! Thanks for the chats, you always do a fantastic job.

Eric Hansen

2:54

Hi John, great question that requires an ocean of an answer. And all I have is a Solo cup. I'll do my best. Quite frankly, Bob Davie wasn't a good leader even when he had experience. Faust was a high school coach. Charlie knew offense, but couldn't get the defense right. Marcus Freeman succeeded because he was brave enough to know he didn't have all the answers, and he wasn't afraid to ask questions. And he continues to do that even now. And he asks the right questions. His authenticity as a coach and a man is his super power. And he adapts and evolves to a rapidly changing college football world around him.

John from Scottsdale

2:51

Thank you for hosting these chats. Your insights helps the off season move by quickly as we wait for the 2026 season. Think back to April 2022. Coach Freeman was 5 months on the job. Did you expect Marcus Freeman to be as good of a coach as he is now? I’ll admit I did not. The only ND head coaches in my lifetime prior to Freeman with no previous experience were Faust, Davie, and Weiss and none of those tenures were successes. What were your expectations and why do you think Freeman has succeeded when others in similar circumstances failed?

Eric Hansen

2:51

So having said that, I like Faison at PR, but they may want to use someone else in that role. And there are plenty of good ones. On kickoffs I'd like to see Aneyas Williams or Dallas Golden.

2:49

Hi Tom. Special teams will always be a priority under Marcus Freeman, and it has paid off for them. Haven't seen the kickers/punter yet. We'll likely see that at the April 18 scrimmage. We saw them doing a punt block drills and involved a ton of players in that. Marcus Freeman was one of the three punters involved in the drill. I think Javian Osborne is the only one who could wedge his way into the mix who is out for spring. I always want to be clear about what we've seen and what we have not. We have seen players fielding kickoffs and punts and run a few yards down the field without having to break tackles or make someone miss. (more)

Tom F, Kennesaw, GA

2:42

Eric, my understanding is that the Irish are spending a lot of time working on Special Teams. Have you been able to witness any of that work??? Also, are all of the kick/punt return candidates available to practice in Spring ball? Who do you see as the top 2 candidates for each returner position??? Sure seems like Faison is still the best for returning punts. Thanks, and I hope spring continues in SB. Go Irish!!!

Eric Hansen

2:42

Hi Glenn, as an AP voter, I really dig into the research on these kind of topics. More good news, with no spring transfer portal this year, we have a better idea of how these teams are shaping up, with offseason injuries as possible trajectory changers. Having said that, April is usually not when I do the research. But I will take a stab at it. As previously references, Notre Dame is No. 3 in the SP+ ratings for ESPN. Ohio State is 1, Oregon 2, Georgia 4 and Indiana 5. As far as a sleeper, maybe LSU at 10, with Lane Kiffin and a new expensive roster.

Glenn from Seattle, WA

2:37

Hi Eric. Feels like all the talk is about Notre Dame making the playoff this season—and with our schedule and talent, that should be the starting point. How do you think we stack up against the other likely contenders like Ohio State, Georgia, Texas, and Oregon? With what they’ve got coming back, what they added through recruiting and the portal, and how their schedules look, what are our real chances of winning it all? Any dark horse National Championship contenders your keeping an eye on? Thanks!

Eric Hansen

2:37

Doza, thanks so much for the info!

Doza from New Bedford MA

2:36

For the question about tickets to the Nave game in Foxborough. Ticketmaster is where I got my tickets. Just checked and they still have plenty available.

Eric Hansen

2:36

Jack, thank you for your question. I am guessing here that there will be a second night game. The bigger guess is which one beyond Miami? If you can email me, I'll try to do some digging.

Jack, Strongsville, Oh

2:35

Hi Eric. I am planning my annual visit for a home football game. Do you think there will be any night games besides Miami this year? Thanks for all your great work.

Eric Hansen

2:34

Hi Ed. Ross Dellenger, who's part of our On3 national team, did a great breakdown of this that I can't do justice in this forum. Here it is: The NCAA may not be able to deliver everything in Trump's executive order

I'm not afraid to touch the stove here, because I can apply this purely to sports and stay out of the political quagmire. And the bottom line is this ... the gesture is appreciated, because it continues to conversations that must be had. In terms of it actually making changes, I'll borrow this line from a strong CBSSports.com piece: The answer, at least for now, is not much -- unless Congress acts or courts uphold it. ... So the journey conitnues.

Ed from Sayville

2:23

Hello Eric. Has there been any reaction that you may have heard regarding issue of the executive order recently put forth by the president? Might the order have sufficient bite to have a meaningful impact on a near term basis on college athletics? Might the threat of holding back federal funding to public and graduate research programs at schools like Notre Dame be enough to force some action? Could players think twice about entering the portal multiple times should transfer limits be put back in place? Feel free to gong me, or throw up your hands if this series of questions belongs on meet the press.

Eric Hansen

2:22

Hi Orange County. You do know that sports writers are the worst ones to ask (at least this one), because we don't have the experience of doing that to help you through it. It's similar to when people ask me about South Bend hotels. I have no idea, because my friends and family stay at my house. BUT that is Navy's home game and I have a good contact there, so if you can email me (ehansen@insidendsports.com), I will contact him and get you some into. If you need advice on grilling beer brats or good steaks, now THAT'S in my wheelhouse.

Tickets

2:17

Greetings from Orange County, CA. My son and I are planning to attend the ND vs Navy game this year in Foxburough, MA. Can anybody point me in the right direction to get tickets? I know about the second level re-sellers, but hopefully there are other options. Thanks Eric for your outstanding job in educating us that are not worthy!

Eric Hansen

2:16

Hi Jim, and thank you. So, you are taking Miami and BYU out of the mix because they'll likely be ranked, I assume? I have not gotten to the point of studying matchups, but of the remaining teams this is how they are ranked in ESPN's SP+ analytics ratings: 8. Miami, 18. BYU, 28. SMU, 54 North Carolina, 61 Wisconsin, 63. Navy, 67. Michigan State, 69. Syracuse, 74.BC, 75. Stanford, 82. Purdue, 120. Rice ... so based on this it would be SMU. And North Carolina on the road is a good call for a trap game. For the record, ND is ranked No. 3, so they will likely be favored in every game.

Jim From Springfield, IL

2:05

Thanks for these chats. North Carolina (away) and SMU (some talent there) appear to me to be the likeliest potential "upsets" this season. What think you?

Eric Hansen

2:00

Hi Roger. I hope I am playing the game correctly here. My answer is I have not seen a roster this complete/athletic/promising since the Holtz years and with a really good coaching staff, from top to bottom, to go with it. AND I have never seen this administration this in sync with football.

Roger from Peoria

1:58

Eric: Darnn, i hit the send too soon. "Hope springs eternal!" It's ND Spring ball so that well known phrase applies. Most Irish fans, myself included, likely apply that phrase every Spring whether warranted or not. Why, in your opinion, is the application of that phrase this Spring legitimate? Thanks as always for your cogent insights and observations!!

Eric Hansen

1:57

Hi Pat. the intent is absolutely to develop another in-house No. 1 QB option once CJ Carr heads to the NFL, which could be after this season. The portal has become a safety net in this regard rather than the top option. But with the way college football is structured, everyone operates on one-year commitments and contracts, so you may not be able to execute what you intend. Having said that, here is why I think ND has a good chance to implement their intent. 1) The Irish are recruiting that position at a consistently high level. 2) ND is very competitive in the NIL/rev share space. 3) Having Gino Guidugli as the position coach and Mike Denbrock as the offensive coordinator are great assets and investments in that plan. So my prediction without having to cheat with a crystal ball is ND will indeed do as you've laid out and have an in-house successor.

Pat, Philly

1:47

As always, thanks. Sitting at your crystal ball 1) Do you think Notre Dame will finally experience a successful, "in-house" QB transition after Carr leaves? I'm defining that as a QB ND recruited declaring for the NFL or graduating and then moving the following year into a recruited QB who holds the job until they leave early or graduate. They haven't done it successfully this century! Crist and Wimbush seemed teed up but were unable to hold the job. Maybe Clausen gets an asterisk if he was healthy as a true Freshman (although he never overlapped with Quinn)...2) Given how hard its proven to be and the success of teams like Indiana, Miami, and ND itself with Leonard, should this be something the program even wants to do - judging by Jarrard reclassying, that seems to be the case.

Eric Hansen

1:46

As far as transfers, your question got cut off. before you finished your sentence, but this is not a spring transfer portal period this year. So the 20 offensive linemen on the roster will be the 20 who open the season with the Irish. The portal is unpredictable, because it's not longer just about playing time. There are financial considerations and how close a player is to getting the ND degree he came for in the first place. ND had zero incoming or outgoing transfers at the position group in January, but they could have next year. We'll see.

1:43

The most encouraging scenario is the one that Liam Eichenberg followed, and that was coming into his own later than some of the players in his class and the class behind him and becoming an All-American and high draft pick. The Irish still don't have overwhelming numbers at tackle, but redshirt freshmen Will Black and Matty Augustine are ahead of Prescod now. There are true freshmen who could make a move. Owen Strebig could. So this is a significant developmental year for Styles in terms of being in the mix to someday be a starter. (more)

1:39

Tim, between your daffodils reference and your question cutting off at the end, am I jumping to a conclusion that you've taken full advantage of the rescinding of the no drinking rule? I do like your questions, and we've already hit on the Brenan Vernon saga. So let's focus on Styles Prescod. Prescod has been a lot closer to being in the fire than Vernon, but he's battling younger players leaping over him on the depth chart. He is a 6-6, 298-pound redshirt sophomore. who played 89 snaps over 8 games last season. He did not have a very favorable film grade from Pro Football Focus. (more)

Tim Thompson Nantucket MA

1:28

Hi all, daffodils coming up = spring football. Recurring discussions about depth and “sleepers” have covered many usual suspects, but 2 players are stuck in my conception of possible contributors, one offense, one defense. On the d-line someone who seems buried is Brennan Vernon. Destined for perpetual back-up? I recall he was a highly regarded recruit, but has been stuck on the 3-deep, mild situational rotation player. Then, what about Styles Prescod. Had some meaningful minutes last year, but seems apparent that the O-line has a sure 7-deep lineup in place. I expect 2-3 o-line players to enter portal before.

Eric Hansen

1:27

Hi Bob. Freshman Ayden Pouncey intrigues the heck out of me. He is a guy I am really high on, but not sure what he turns into. He's in the mix to be in the return game for example. I am pretty sure he could play offense at the college level, but where could he best help Notre Dame this year and in the future? I think this year definitely as a cornerback. But down the road, I wouldn't be surprised if we saw him play safety.

bob (oxnard CA)

1:25

Hi Eric, do you think Ayden Pouncey can stay at corner through his career? He seems lean enough to potentially have the body type and speed.

Eric Hansen

1:25

We'll be talking to the DBs on Friday, and I find the best insight about a new position coaches comes from the players -- in what they say and don't say.

1:24

Hi Don. Thanks for jumping in this week. Not too early to get a sense for them. I think what helps all three of them -- D-Line coach Charlie Partridge, LBs coach Brian Jean-Mary and DBs coach Aaron Henry is that the defensive coordinator didn't change too, so the basics of the scheme are the same. That makes processing the nuances of technique teaching differences easier for the players to take in. Jason Onye, for instance, was talking yesterday about how helpful Partridge's film study about stance, etc., has already helped his game. (more)

Don in Scottsdale, AZ

1:14

Eric, Thanks for keeping the chat going. Specific to the new defensive coaches it seems like the new D line coach is fitting in quite well. What about the new linebacker and D backfield coaches? Seems like they have bigger shoes to fill. Is it too early to get a sense for them?

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