JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat | Jan. 7, 2026 | 1/7/2026

Notre Dame Football Live Chat | Jan. 7, 2026

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Matt (KC)

1:50

Hi Coach Hansen, back with another quick five if you are so kind to answer. 1. Transfer portal anxiety is high among the fan base, but with a loaded recruiting class the last two years, is there a perception we are thin at spots where maybe we are just inexperienced but have young talent ready to get their opportunity? 2. My son wants to know if you think J. Love will still be available at no. 9 when our Chiefs are picking in April? 3. KVA is one of my new favorite players, when he was on the field he was everywhere and high energy, what is his prognosis for return and ceiling next year? 4. Do you think any freshman start day 1 next season? 5. What game at home next season are you most looking forward to, other than Miami (I assume)?

Eric Hansen

1:50

Hi Jack!!! Happy New Year. I don't know if being back in the pros has changed his perspective, but I always got the impression he eventually wanted to get back to and stay in the NFL, which is where he is now and where he seems to continue to pursue jobs.

Jack, Strongsville, Oh

1:49

Hi Eric. Happy New Year. Do you know if Tommy Reese has more interest in being a HC in the college or pro football game? Thanks for your great work.

Eric Hansen

1:48

Hi Tony. Let me hot you with your answers in kind of rapid-fire fashion: 1. Jagusah, slow on the mend but making progress. Uncertain timeline, but there's optimism. I did a story on this right before Christmas which you may have missed: LINK. Kedren ... also did a story on this, but they feel good about his recovery timeline and what he could bring in 2026. Schrauth declared for the NFL. Greathouse is 100 percent and getting ready for spring ball. KVA we need clarification. Will ask the next time we get Marcus Freeman. Logan is presumably healthy and is set to play baseball. Cooper Flanagan (I think you didn't mean James) is back on track to be ready for spring. Also did an item on him around Christmas. See what happens when you celebrate the holidays instead of scouring the web?

Christian Gray, I understand, will be good but need to check on that one. Hope to see you soon as well.

2581

1:41

Tony, Lexington, KY, by way of Somerset, PA (high school), Notre Dame (undergrad) & Washington, DC (law school) --- Always enjoy reading the transcripts of your chats, Eric, and getting a lot of good information! I assume that this chat will be chock-full of transfer portal/NIL questions, so I'm gonna concentrate on players who are already on ND's roster. Can you give us the status of ND's injured players: Charles Jagusah; Kedren Young; Billy Schrauth; Jaden Greathouse; KVA; Brandon Logan; James Flanigan; and I'm gonna include Christian Gray? Will Logan be playing baseball for the Irish this Spring? And, finally, have you heard what Tyler Buchner hopes to do next year (I assume that he will play lacrosse this Spring)? Hope to see you soon, Eric !

Eric Hansen

1:41

Concerned? No. Curious? Sure, but an under-the-radar reason for feeling optimistic is Notre Dame being able to retain analyst/asst linebacker coach Tre Reader after it appeared he'd initially leave for Michigan State with Max Bullough. RISING star in recruiting and coaching. And Marcus is very involved in linebacker recruiting. Al Washington did sign two very good defensive ends in this most-recent cycle, so I am open to the possibility he can do so with linebackers.

Rich-Key West

1:39

Are you concerned that the recruiting and production at linebacker may be not remain at the same high level with the coaching change?

Eric Hansen

1:38

I am going to say six, but would not be surprised if it's more.

ced

1:38

ced walker Saginaw Michigan aka sagnasty Saginaw pride how many transfer portal players do you think will signed to Notre Dame God Bless This Football Team here come the irish trust the process the golden standard rally we are nd god country go irish love thee notre dame our mother pray for us

Eric Hansen

1:38

Happy New Year and all the best to you, Larry! Indiana is doing a great job in the transfer portal, and it's a much bigger part of their business/roster-building model than it is for Notre Dame. They are the No. 1 team in the country for a reason and deserve everything they've worked hard for. I covered Indiana football and men's basketball early in my career. I know how hard it is to consistently win in football there. But I think Notre Dame can be secure about its place in college football for the long term.

Guest

1:35

Larry from Topton, PA. Happy New Year Eric, and I wish a healthy 2026 for you, your family, Tyler and your B&G team members! Coogan last year, Burnham this year, and now Indiana is killing it in portal recruiting. Is ND now the development team for IU? And is ND the #2 program in the state? I look forward to your words of wisdom to help us ND fans get through the offseason. Go Irish!!

Eric Hansen

1:31

I think Preston Zinter's loss on special teams needs to be reconciled and will be. There was not a clear path to playing time for him as a defensive end. ... Love that ND is taking a look at Keeley and vice versa. Very intrigued. ... haven't really studied Kentucky's roster so I'll have to defer answering that one. New coaching staff and I an excited to see what he can do.

1:28

Hi Marie. Thanks for your questions. I think 8-10 transfers would be on the high side. I am thinking 8 at the most, but we'll see and it might not get to that. Keep in mind, not every really good player entered the portal on Jan. 2 and that includes players on teams that are still active in the College Football Playoff. So the positions that I feel are the most critical are interior defensive linemen (plural), edge rusher, boundary receiver, backup QB and kicker. Next tier would be cornerback/nickel and another receiver. Luxury would be RB/TE. Could ND win a title or compete for one without those guys? Yes. But you would need a lot of ifs to turn into absolutes and your margin for error is reduced. When you have 95 scholarship spots (and technically up to 105 if you needed it), there's no reason not to add depth to give yourself the extra cushion. (more)

Marie from atlanta

1:10

Hi Eric, I hope your new year is off to a fantastic start. Unfortunately, ND’s a start in the transfer portal has not been great. I know initially we all thought they would take between 8 to 10 transfers. What positions are absolute must gets so much so that if ND doesn’t get them, it will decrease the chance of winning a national championship next year? How big of a loss do you think Preston Zinter is? What are your thoughts on Keon Keeley potentially coming back to ND? So far, it seems he underachieved at Alabama although at the end of the season, he looked like he was maybe starting to have a breakthrough. Perhaps Coach Partridge could finally get him to his potential? Finally, slightly off topic, what do you think of the fit for Kenny Minchey and Kentucky ? Thanks so much for hosting the chat and for all the great insights

Eric Hansen

1:10

Just published a story on the passing of former Notre Dame unanimous All-American Nick Eddy and a tribute to one of the most interesting people I've ever interviewed IMO. Here is the link if you are interested. It is not behind a paywall:
Nick Eddy dies at 81: A tribute to the Notre Dame football great, and his greatness after football

1:08

Kevin, Kevin, Kevin. What is this word "restful" of which you speak? it must be a Canadian term?

Kevin, I think the "refusing to schedule" Notre Dame thing is at best overstated and at worst fiction. But what is real are two elements: It's going to be tough for Notre Dame to get those games in November, beyond the ACC schools. And the CFP folks are going to have to decide if and how to reward teams for playing ... not just ND but other tough P4 teams in the non-conference. If there's no incentive, is the risk worth it? I am confident that one will be worked out. The November question is stickier.

Kevin from Calgary

12:56

Eric, hope you've had a (relatively) restful holiday season! There's been a lot of chatter, especially among the anti-Notre Dame pundits, about teams refusing to schedule the Irish in the future to ensure they don't risk an out-of-conference loss. Do you think some teams are seriously considering boycotting Notre Dame? And if so, shouldn't Notre Dame be openly campaigning about the advantages of playing a tough opponent? Clearly Miami is in the playoffs because they beat the Irish. If they had played a patsy in week one and then lost to two weaker teams like they did, their 10-2 wouldn't have gotten them anywhere near a top 10 ranking. Thanks for continuing to hold these chats and keeping us Irish fans well-informed!

Eric Hansen

12:55

Hi Mike. The rev share money is working according to plan. From the sources I have spoken with, the supposed legit NIL money is not working according to plan. NOT. And it is not a sustainable model. More on that in tomorrow's story. There's a lot of elements in this portal cycle that are already broken. And there's no proven enforcement mechanism to deal with it.

Mike Nolan Michigan city

12:53

Where is all “ Roster/Portal money coming from after Revenue Sharing? NIL seems not policed. Do Collectives (ie “Rally”) still exist and how are they controlled?

Eric Hansen

12:51

Manny!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The only thing Notre Dame would have got out of playing in the Pop-Tarts bowl is a sugar high and maybe a sunburn. This isn't about exposure. It's about money, opportunity and fit. Players know ND is going to be good next year, can get them to the NFL and has a reasonable budget. But it's a different dynamic from high school recruiting. You are not necessarily getting them to guy into 4-for-40 and the spiritual nature of the university. If these guys are grad transfers especially, it's business first.

Manny from San Pedro

12:48

Eric!!!!!! we seem to be striking out in the portal. Had we went to the pop tart bowl would that have kept us in the forefront of athletes mind in order to land a couple. Not sure why receivers wouldn’t want to play in this offense. Your thoughts?

Eric Hansen

12:48

Happy New Year, Terry. This is an area I am going to tease out in great detail in tomorrow's piece. But yes, potentially that could become a big problem at schools throwing around money almost recklessly and overpaying for portal players. Now, that's not a universal issue and I don't think it will be at Notre Dame. But it will certainly be a problem at some schools. It's not specifically that they haven't invested in the school, but their production may be less than a player already on the roster, and then it resets the financial bar for that player -- at least in his mind.

Terry, Huron, SD

12:42

Happy New Year Eric. I am sure many are freaking out over ND losing out on several big name transfer players during the first couple days of the portal being open. I am full faith in MF and staff that they will not just throw money at players who may not be a GOOD FIT. There are plenty of good players left who would be a good fit. In addition, how do the players, who are already at ND, feel when a new player added to the roster and making more NIL money without any investment to the university. Am I way off with my thinking? To me, this is why ND invests so much time recruiting the right HS players and it appears that is paying dividends. Thank you for taking the time to do these chats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Eric Hansen

Yes, my email is still the same.

12:38

Hi back CJ!! Extra points for the exclamation points! I do not think the staff was unprepared for the transfer portal onslaught. What I will say is that those on the outside looking in were surprised by ND's approach to not host players the first 3-4 days. And I think the different dynamics of the portal this year compared to previous years may have been a misread on ND's part, BUT a correctible one. I still have the sense that the Irish will end up with what they need and this will make sense at the end. And I have reason to believe that beyond a gut instinct. If I am wrong on that, I'll own it. But that is my take regarding the angst that some people are feeling. I think there is reason to be patient. ... No, I don't think Marcus Freeman's NFL chatter affected portal prospects. Now a lot of these deals you are seeing at other places were made before the portal ever opened, they were not finalized until it did. And by that time, Marcus was clear about his intentions of staying. (more)

CJ from Athens,GA

12:30

Hi Eric!!! It has been a while my friend! Regarding the transfer portal…do you feel the staff was unprepared for the onslaught or do you believe all the chatter about Marcus Freeman leaving for the NFL cast doubt in the minds of some of the players? Btw…do you still have the same email? Would like to run something by you!

Eric Hansen

12:29

Tom, thanks and love the approach Terry is taking with his Stage 4 lung cancer. ... I think your read on visits and take-it-or-leave-it offers is accurate — not universal, but very common. I plan to go into greater detail in my story tomorrow.

Tom F, Kennesaw, GA

12:26

Hi Eric, thanks for posting the update on Terry Hanratty. Hope all goes well for him. It appears as though Portal recruiting has a much greater sense of urgency than HS recruiting. With the number of players who were planning a visit to ND but never made it to SB that tells me portal players are being given a take it or leave it offer from many schools. Because we are dealing with mostly money the players are having their arm twisted to commit on the spot. Is this a valid description and do you have any info to confirm this??!! Thanks and hopefully ND signs some really good players to help the '26 team....

Eric Hansen

12:26

Aside from Josh Burnham and key QB backup Kenny Minchey, most of the players hitting the portal for ND were players who didn't have a great chance to figure into the two-deeps next season for ND. So it is not creating necessarily a void at those spots that must be filled by freshmen. Having said that, there's some very talented freshmen, which is why you see some of the names you do in the portal from ND. So, whether the players in front of them had decided to transfer or not, players like S Joey O'Brien, CB Khary Adams, WR Kaydon Finley, TE Ian Premer, both freshman RBs are the kind of players who would push for playing time anyway. And there likely will be others. I think the Keon Keeley visit today (Wednesday) is fascinating. Former five-star prospect who has struggled to develop but is coming on and has some ties at ND. I'd take him if he's interested.

12:20

Hi Mark and Happy New Year. I wanted to start here, because people do get freaked out about the number of Notre Dame players entering the transfer portal. Not that you are necessarily or that you're mildly concerned. Your question is about how this plays with the freshman class. But I wanted to set the stage from a big-picture standpoint. If you're going to add 29 freshmen and let's say six transfers, you are also going to have to lose 35 players off the roster. Notre Dame only had 13 players with expiring eligibility, with four more entering the NFL draft early and one medically retiring. They may recoup DT Jason Onye if his petition for a sixth year goes through. So there's 17 scholarship players that have to leave the roster via transfer. And this is the new normal. (more)

Guest

12:11

Mark from T-ville, NJ Happy New Year Eric and thanks for keeping the Chats going. With the number of ND players entering the portal, will this lead to playing a number of freshman this year? And if so who do you see in the two deep depth chart? What do you think about Keely visit? thanks again for the chats look froward to them!

Eric Hansen

OK, we're off ...

12:09

There are a lot of portal questions this week. Two things: I will have a story tomorrow afternoon on kind of the behind-the-scenes on how the portal cycle is going and where it might head in the future. Also, I don't want to get to specific without some disclaimers, because these storylines on specific prospects change very quickly.

12:07

Only the No Spitting and No Fighting rules will be enforced this week, but I'm adding a No Whining rule or at least asking to keep it either short or entertaining if you must whine.

Here are the rules:

12:06

Please include your name and hometown along with your question(s).

12:05

As far as this week's chat ...

► The Inside ND Sports Podcast has been rebranded as the Third & Gold Podcast. Going forward the pod will be available on all the podcast places you found us before as well as our YouTube Channel. On our most recent episode, we caught up with former Steve Wiltfong, vice president/national college football recruiting and the transfer portal for On3|Rivals. The next episode will drop on Friday.

12:04

► If you missed the last episode of our aspiring-to-be-viral Notre Dame Football YouTube show, Football Never Sleeps, what are you doing with your life? Seriously, the show keeps its shelf life long after the live presentation, so you can catch up now or later on our YouTube channel. We’ll be back next week, Monday at 7 p.m. ET, for another presentation of Football Never Sleeps with Tyler James co-hosting with me. And check out some great shows on the Blue & Gold YouTube channel as well, including the live Notre Dame Football Show, on Wednesday nights. In fact, Mike Singer and I will be on tonight, live at 8 ET with all the latest portal possibilities and developments.

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