Lindy's College Football preview magazine ranks Notre Dame football inside its top-10
Lindy's College Football preview magazine ranks Notre Dame football inside its top-10 Lindy's College Football magazine ranks Notre Dame No. 6 but projects the Irish to miss the College Football Playoff.
Notre Dame will be favored in every one of its games this upcoming football season according to DraftKings Sportsbook, but one publication does not have the Fighting Irish in its College Football Playoff projections.
Following a season in which the Irish set a program record for wins on their way to the national championship game, Lindy's Sports released its preseason college football preview magazine and ranked the Irish No. 6 nationally. Certainly a solid ranking, and the same spot Athlon Sports slotted the Irish in its preseason magazine, but Lindy's has Ohio State, LSU, Oregon, Alabama, Georgia, Miami and SMU earning at-large CFP bids and not Notre Dame.
From the magazine: "We'll know early if Notre Dame's playoff expectation is warranted when the Irish play Miami, Texas A&M and Arkansas in the first four weeks. With only six players drafted, Notre Dame returns the wealth of a squad that was a few plays away from winning it all." - Lindy's Sports
The Notre Dame defensive line and linebacker corps failed to make the Top 10 in Lindy's unit rankings, which is quite debatable. The magazine is also concerned about the quarterback situation, where either redshirt freshman CJ Carr or redshirt sophomore Kenny Minchey will be taking the first snap in the season opener at Miami Labor Day weekend.
Despite the playoff snub from Lindy's, though, it's clear that national college football observers are bullish on the Irish to remain a national contender in 2025 and beyond.
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New York Times
38 minutes ago
- New York Times
6 big questions for the 2025 NBA Finals and why Thunder will beat Pacers
So … are we really in a new era of NBA playoff outcomes? These next two weeks may tell us emphatically. For the last couple of postseason cycles, I've noted that postseason results have diverged from those of the regular season to a much greater degree. Chalky postseasons of yore have given way to teams seeded eighth, fifth and fourth making the last three NBA Finals. A team seeded sixth or lower has made it to the conference finals in each of the last three years (Minnesota Timberwolves, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat); a team seeded fifth or lower has done it six times in five years. Advertisement Overall, this postseason is tracking to be another outlier in terms of lower seeds advancing. The team without home-court advantage has already won five series this year (Indiana Pacers twice, Timberwolves, Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks), and the Pacers upsetting the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals would make it six. Historically, that number of upsets has been between three and four per year, but not lately. In the six post-pandemic postseasons, we've had five, five, three, seven, six and now five again with a potential for six — an average of over six a year, or nearly double the historic upset rate. Remember, there are only 15 playoff series a year; underdogs are winning more than 40 percent of them! What is this, the NHL? However, even with all those upsets, one piece of the equation has held: The champions were a regular-season monster, at least to some extent. Every champion but one since 1980 — including the last 29 in a row — has been a top-three seed that won at least 52 games (prorated to an 82-game season). Lately, though, we've had several close calls. Four straight finalists and five of the last six have violated that condition, but so far, none have prevailed in the finals: Miami in 2020 (a 49-prorated-wins fifth seed), Boston in 2022 (51 wins), Miami in 2023 (a 44-win eighth seed), Dallas in 2024 (a 50-win fifth seed) and now Indiana (a 50-win fourth seed). Thus, an Indiana win over Oklahoma City would be icing on the cake for the idea that regular-season records just don't matter as much as they used to in predicting playoff performance. The Thunder had one of the greatest regular seasons of all time, winning 68 games with a historic scoring margin. Indiana … did not. The Pacers were 9-14 at one point. Of course, we could be headed for the opposite narrative: a third straight season in which upsets in other series allow a favorite to steamroll through a broken bracket of crooked-number seeds. Following Denver in 2023 and Boston in 2024, the Thunder could make it a three-peat for No. 1 seeds coasting to a title against remarkably soft opposition — not facing a single team that was either seeded in the top three or won more than 50 games. Advertisement It's not just a disparity in wins and scoring margin in these finals, though. There's also the element of the JV conference playing the varsity. Oklahoma City went 29-1 against the Eastern Conference this year (the Thunder's loss to Milwaukee in the NBA Cup final didn't count in the standings), dropping a January game in Cleveland. The Pacers, meanwhile, were the only one of the East's playoff or Play-In teams to fare better against the West (21-10) than their own conference. So, as we head into our small-market fever-dream NBA Finals of pesky 10-deep squads that swarm and scrap and run and press and are generally the league's two most annoying teams to play against, that's my biggest question: Will an Indiana upset be the final, definitive proof that the regular season's predictive value for the postseason has diminished? Or will a Thunder romp to the title prove that the rule of 52 wins and a top-three seed still holds? That's the overarching storyline, but I've got five others that are a bit more micro as we look at this series. The biggest hurdle for this series being remotely competitive is whether Indiana can avoid turning the ball over against the Thunder's voracious, swarming defense that appears to have six players and about 14 arms. The good news is that the Pacers were largely successful in this one regard in the regular season. In their two meetings against the Thunder, they turned it over on only 10.9 percent of possessions, which would be a near league-leading figure and is far below the league-best 14.9 percent the Thunder forced from their frazzled opponents in the regular season. That shouldn't be a huge surprise; Indiana had the league's third-lowest turnover rate in the regular season, and its two All-Stars, Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam, both had individual turnover rates below 10 percent in the regular season. Haliburton averaged more than five assists for every turnover in both the regular season and the playoffs. Advertisement The importance of avoiding those miscues is two-fold: First, it gives the Pacers more chances to score but also takes away the Thunder's ability to run on the Pacers. Oklahoma City's speed and skill in transition are deadly, but the Thunder are a much more manageable foe playing station-to-station in the half court. Second, if the Pacers can keep the ball from prying hands long enough, they can unlock more of the open corner 3s that are the Achilles heel of the Thunder's defensive scheme. The bad news for the Pacers: Even with the turnover management, they still lost both games. The Thunder blew them out 132-111 in Oklahoma City on March 29. They also rallied for a 120-114 win in Indiana in a game that was played on Dec. 26 because the NBA needed to show us four lottery teams on Christmas Day. (I jest, but not having the Thunder on Christmas in particular was an own goal by the league that was readily apparent at the time.) If the Pacers can avoid turnovers and still can't beat the Thunder, what hope do they have? We'll get into that in a bit, but let's pivot to their opponent first. The Thunder start two bigs in Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein, but coach Mark Daigneault abandoned that lineup early and often in the postseason, particularly in the conference finals. It's notable in this case because the Pacers like to play fast, and because the Thunder don't seem to have a readily available foil for Siakam at power forward in particular. We don't know the answers here because Holmgren didn't play in either regular-season game, but in the second one, Daigneault leaned heavily on small ball. Hartenstein played 14 minutes, and Kenrich Williams played 26; forget two bigs, OKC wasn't even playing with one. This is a sometimes-wrinkle that Daigneault loves and could use heavily against a Pacers team lacking post threats. While he's been highly flexible with his sub patterns, one consistent pattern has to been to end first and third quarters with Kenrich Williams as the only 'big' in a small lineup captained by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander while Jalen Williams and Holmgren rest, then start second and fourth quarters with Gilgeous-Alexander resting, Jalen Williams and Holmgren in the game and Aaron Wiggins replacing Kenrich Williams for more offensive support. There's an opposite point here for Indiana, which might not have much incentive to continue using a 10-man rotation whose last two players (Ben Sheppard and Thomas Bryant) have mostly been ineffective in the playoffs (yes, I saw Game 6 against New York). Playing Bryant, in particular, might be a non-sequitur if the Thunder are playing small anyway, which would theoretically make Obi Toppin as a backup center much more appealing. Advertisement I kind of buried the lede here. In the two regular-season meetings, Indiana had nothing for the league MVP. Gilgeous-Alexander had two brilliant games against the Pacers, finishing with 45 points and eight assists on 15-of-22 shooting in a tight win in Indiana in December. He then posted 33 points and eight dimes in just 31 minutes in a blowout win in March. He had one turnover combined in the two games. Aaron Nesmith missed the first game and played only 23 minutes in the second, but he's likely to get first crack at Gilgeous-Alexander because of his superior screen navigation, and Andrew Nembhard is so good off the ball that it sometimes feels like a waste to put him on the ball. However, the Pacers likely will have a similar plan to the one they threw at Jalen Brunson in the conference finals, attempting to wear him down by rotating multiple defenders who pick him up 94 feet throughout the game. Sheppard, Bennedict Mathurin and perhaps even T.J. McConnell will all get turns. The Pacers even tried Toppin on Gilgeous-Alexander in the regular season. Indy likely will sprinkle in dollops of zone, too, after Denver used it successfully against the Thunder in the second round. (Minnesota's inability to muster an effective zone defense despite its individual defensive talent was one reason the Western Conference finals weren't closer.) One other micro-thing to watch is something I call the 'Shai shoulder.' The Thunder guard is very good at getting just enough contact with a defender to knock him off balance without hitting hard enough for it to be an offensive foul, opening space for his stepback middies. Watch here, for instance, as Sheppard gets both shoulders before the MVP rises from his office at the free-throw line: Indiana seemed primed for this in the Cleveland series against the Cavs' Ty Jerome, who had a similar ploy to get into his floaters. Nembhard, in particular, is a master of sidestepping opponents' attempts to put a shoulder into him. It didn't help at all in the first two meetings, but with more time to prepare for one specific opponent, it's possible the Pacers could use this trick in their favor. Advertisement The battle of the point guards is the main attraction, but the All-Star forwards in this series could have just as much to say about the outcome. Siakam was the MVP of the Eastern Conference finals, an indefatigable force who tormented the Knicks with his 94-foot sprints to the cup. Jalen Williams, meanwhile, has been a worthy second star in the Thunder's run through this postseason after falling short in the same role a year earlier in Oklahoma City's upset loss to Dallas. On paper, the matchups would seem to favor Siakam, but he wasn't good in either game in the regular season. The Thunder have no natural matchup for him in terms of size — the one thing they lack in their Noah's Ark of a roster is a true power forward — and may end up leaning on a combination of Holmgren, Williams and Alex Caruso to check him. If the Thunder stay big (see above), Siakam could exploit the Holmgren matchup at the start of halves, similar to the way Minnesota's Jaden McDaniels did during the Wolves' best moments in the conference finals. On the flip side, Siakam is much less prone to backing down and turning his back to the defense than some other fours, which could make siccing Caruso on him slightly more problematic than doing the same against, say, Julius Randle. On the flip side, Williams is a problem that doesn't lend itself to great answers from Indiana's end, particularly if Nesmith is on Gilgeous-Alexander. Nembhard gives up size, and using him on Williams diminishes his strength as a help defender, while Haliburton is too vulnerable as a one-on-one defender. Putting Siakam on Williams and Nembhard or Haliburton on Holmgren is another possibility; in theory, the Thunder could post up Holmgren on one of those two guards, but in practice, he couldn't even post up Mike Conley last round. Williams also gets a lot of run with the second unit to begin the second and fourth quarters, and the Pacers need to think carefully about how the bench rotation looks against him. Mathurin has the physical tools to check him, but he can be erratic in practice; Sheppard is dogged but undersized. This is where the injury to Jarace Walker in Game 6 against the Knicks stings; he'd be perfect for the bench minutes against Williams but will be out for at least the first two games after a gruesome ankle sprain. The Pacers and Thunder both play fast and use more players than most teams. In Indiana's case, it's part of a programmatic strategy to wear down opponents throughout a game and a series. Advertisement The Pacers run after opponent made baskets, pressure the ball full-court following their own and get into their offense as quickly as any team in the league. The flip side of that is that they use a 10-man rotation, even if the back end of that rotation isn't particularly good. They're gambling that the bad minutes from their ninth and 10th men will be more than offset by the diminishment of the opponents' best players over 48 exhausting minutes. Indiana didn't lead the league in pace, but both the Pacers and Thunder were in the top seven. In the Thunder's case, it's more of a pure track meet effect from the speed of their transitions after turnovers and missed shots. Oklahoma City also spams subs throughout the evening, with Daigneault often using 10 or even 11 players in a single half, even in the playoffs. What's remarkable and less discussed, however, is each team's strength going back the other way. Oklahoma City and Indiana were first and second in opponent fast-break points this season and had been even stingier in the playoffs: The Thunder have allowed just 9.3 per game and the Pacers 9.4 in a league where the median team gave up 15.3 in the regular season. One way for the Pacers to pull off the upset is to extend the series enough that they wear out the Thunder. But it's much harder to play this game against the youth and depth of the Thunder than it is against, say, New York, and the schedule of the finals is much more spread out, with two days off between every game except Games 3 and 4. Contrast that with the every-other-day schedule of the second round and conference finals that helped them exhaust the Knicks the past two seasons. It's also possible the Thunder turn the tables a bit. It's easy to see a scenario where Pacers' back-end-rotation players like Sheppard and Bryant prove unplayable in this series and Indiana's top eight ends up overextended, or one where the Thunder dial up the heat on Haliburton so much that it empties his tank. I want this to be a great series as much as anyone. The Pacers are a remarkable story of a finals team built with no tanking and a series of shrewd moves in a flyover market, and they have adopted as unique a style of play as any team in the league. The Thunder may be building an all-time juggernaut, and it may or may not be even better when they remove all their tall people and just let five perimeter players run around like crazy. For however long this series goes, it should be fun. I'm just not sure that it's going to go that long. There are hints of places where the Pacers could find an advantage, be it via avoiding turnovers, finding corner 3s or utilizing Siakam's matchup. Rick Carlisle is a certified warlock who will max out whatever edges he can find and throw out wild Plans E and F if the first few ideas don't work. Advertisement Unfortunately, Indiana didn't seem to have great answers for Oklahoma City's attack in the regular season, and that was with Holmgren missing both games. This Thunder squad might be embarking on the first chapter of the NBA's next dynasty. They had arguably the third-most dominant regular season in NBA history (only the 1996 Bulls and 2016 Warriors have an ironclad case that theirs was better) and have followed it up with a playoff run that has included wins by 51, 43, 32, 26 and 30. I think we're looking at a first championship for the Thunder franchise (say 'Seattle,' and you lose a finger) and a third straight five-game finals. Emotion alone likely gets the Pacers a win in one of their two home games, but this series shapes up as a coronation. If so, we can hold off on declaring a new era of playoff outcomes … and instead introduce the Thunder Era. Oklahoma City in 5 (Illustration: Demetrius Robinson / The Athletic; Photos: Joe Murphy, Nathaniel S. Butler / NBAE; Gregory Shamus / Getty Images; Alonzo Adams / Imagn Images)
Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
Irish Boxer Turned Pop Culture Star Ends 16 Year Hiatus, Returns Oct. 12 Against WBC's 18th-Ranked, Promoter Confirms
DUBLIN, IE / ACCESS Newswire / June 4, 2025 / Undefeated Irish boxer turned US Billboard Charting and multi-platinum artist Marc Mysterio (3-0, 2 KOs as pro) - his 2006-2009 BoxRec profile application pending - and 10-0-1 amateur standout under the late Gregory Leschishin of USA Boxing - tragically killed last month by a carjacker, according to Yahoo - resumes his world title quest with a clean bill of health after a 15+ year hiatus from the sport. Following a preliminary mutual understanding, Marc Mysterio is set to face the WBC's 18th-ranked Serhiy Radchenko (11-8-0, 5 KOs) on Oct. 12, 2025, in "Irish Pride vs. Ukrainian Glory: Marc Mysterio v. Radchenko," promoter Ville Ruutu of World Class Promotions (WCP) confirmed Wednesday. "WBC Ukraine President Mykola Kovalchuk played a key role in facilitating this mutual understanding, as shown by his initial WhatsApp response, 'I think Radchenko should take the fight,' and we remain grateful for his support." A 2009 basketball injury paused Mysterio's boxing, sparking a music career with hits alongside David Guetta, Avicii, Samantha Fox, Crash Test Dummies and Flo Rida, including "The Dancefloor" which entered the U.S. Billboard charts, plus TMZ, Radar Online, and Perez Hilton buzz, Miami Herald and Boston Globe coverage, and "Trailer Park Boys" fame culminating in 81,000,000+ streams from 15,000,000 listeners during September 2023-September 2024, resulting in over 1,250,000+ Fans and 15,000+ Super Fans on Amazon Music. Last year, he challenged Jake Paul to replace semi-retired opponent Ryan Bourland with himself in a February bout in Puerto Rico - backed by the IBA's former chairman who volunteered to sanction the proposed bout for their vacant super cruiserweight intercontinental championship - covered by the UK's Daily Express and The Irish Star, with Mysterio even posting read-receipts of his team's emails to Nakisa Biderian of MVP Promotions on his X account, @marc_mysterio. "I'm back to finish what I started," Mysterio declared. "On Oct. 12, every Irish fan must join this pilgrimage - Ukrainians will rally for Radchenko. It's Irish pride versus Ukrainian glory!" 2010 WBC Trainer of the Year Gabriel Sarmiento has recently been working with Mysterio in the months prior to Coach Greg's death, and will travel to Ireland for Marc's pre-fight camp. "Marc's skill reflects decades of work and has adapted well to my coaching," Sarmiento said. "He'll prove that he is both a machine and a legitimate contender - I believe Marc will dominate Radchenko." Radchenko, a former WBC silver Bridgerweight champion, has faced undisputed light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol and WBC Bridgerweight champion Kevin Lerena in May 2025. "I fight for Ukraine's glory - Slava Ukraini!" Radchenko has stated previously, translated from Ukrainian, reflecting his enduring inspiration. Jill Diamond, WBC secretary and WBC Cares global chairwoman, was quoted by the UK's Daily Express last year, "Marc Mysterio is a force in music and boxing and, moreover, a friend of the WBC and WBC Cares. We support his efforts." "At present, I look forward to donating a portion of my purse to WBC Cares, as well as tickets to the event for local disabled children," Mysterio notes, confirming his support of the charitable organization and youth. "Speaking personally, not for the DFA or Irish government, Marc inspires Ireland by blending boxing, music, and philanthropy, overcoming countless obstacles after his injury and the recent loss of his lifelong coach - embodying the essence of Irish pride in my view," said David Costello, an Irish diplomat and former head of mission to several countries. "On May 26, at the request of WBC Ukraine President Mykola Kovalchuk, we sent a letter to WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman seeking sanctioning for the Mysterio-Radchenko bout as a ranked fight under WBC rules, including proof of a venue hold for Oct. 12 at one of Europe's top 10 indoor arenas by 2024 ticket sales, as required for sanctioning," Ville Ruutu said. "With Irish and Ukrainian fans competing for scarce tickets, broadcasters like Netflix, ESPN, ESPN+, DAZN and Sky Sports are vying for exclusive rights - possibly drawn by Marc's ESPN 'First Take' tie, when Stephen A. Smith chose 'Be The Truth' for the show in 2016, and Netflix 'Trailer Park Boys' connection. This will influence our decision, though not decisively. We'll prioritize the networks' coverage of this landmark bout from now to early July over financial incentives, aiming for the best long-term outcome for both fighters and the Bridgerweight division. Broadcast partners will be revealed at the mid-July press conference." The official venue, pre-sale ticket date, broadcast partners and event sponsors unveil will occur at a mid-July press conference at which WCP anticipates, in light of both boxers statements, the live appearances of both warriors - as well as the official contract signing to formalize the bout - at a location, date and time to be announced in an early July press release. "I'll fight Radchenko on Oct. 12, with or without WBC sanctioning as a ranked fight. Defeating the 18th-ranked boxer - who entered May 2025 as silver champion - basically guarantees me a top-25 WBC Bridgerweight world ranking - sanctioning should be a mere formality of that result! This is a professional 10-round fight, three-minute rounds, no matter what! I am also volunteering to enter the WBC Clean Program aimed at eradicating PEDs from the sport, required for top 15 rankings in WBC. Finally, I aim to pioneer Bridgerweight, like Holyfield did for cruiserweight, a division ripe with talent, but lacking prestige to casual fans before his charismatic championship reign that paved the road for guys like Usyk, a friend of Radchenko - It all starts Oct. 12 - I just wish that Coach Greg was still here to witness it," Mysterio concludes. Those wishing to obtain media credentials for the press conference and/or interactive livestream should immediately provide their credentials to the media contact listed below. About Marc Mysterio Irish-Canadian undefeated boxer (3-0, 2 KOs) turned multi-platinum artist, with 81 million Amazon Music streams and 15 million listeners (September 2023-September 2024), now fully recovered from injury to resume his career, trained by Gabriel Sarmiento. Mysterio supports WBC Cares, One Fund Boston, and International Red Cross. About Serhiy Radchenko Ukrainian former WBC silver Bridgerweight champion, Radchenko supports WBC Cares and Ukraine's frontline defenders. About Gabriel Sarmiento Argentine trainer Gabriel Sarmiento, named 2010 WBC Trainer of the Year, guided Sergio Martinez to world championships in two weight classes: the WBC super welterweight title (2009-2010) and the unified WBC, WBO, Ring magazine, and lineal middleweight titles (2010-2014). He also trained Kiko Martinez, a two-division world champion, capturing the super bantamweight title (2013-2014) and featherweight title (2021-2022). In addition to Marc Mysterio, Sarmiento currently trains undefeated Polish cruiserweight phenom Michał Soczyński (10-0, 7 KOs). About World Class Promotions Irish-rooted World Class Promotions delivers premier boxing events, blending sport and philanthropy to support WBC Cares and elevate divisions like Bridgerweight (200-224 lbs), recognized by WBC and WBA. Media Contact Ville RuutuWorld Class Promotions (WCP)pr@ Resources Marc Mysterio career bioMarc Mysterio featured in BillboardMarc Mysterio 2025 press photoMarc Mysterio boxing promotion photoDaily Express feature: Marc Mysterio vs. Jake Paul, January 2024Irish Star feature: Marc Mysterio vs. Jake Paul, January 2024Marc Mysterio 81MM+ Streams/Listeners on Amazon MusicMarc Mysterio September 2023-2024 Fans/Super Fans on Amazon MusicIFPI Gold Certification for Marc Mysterio & Trailer Park BoysMarc Mysterio on XYahoo article: Gregory Leschishin murder, May 7, 2025Bubbles on Marc Mysterio with Trailer Park BoysRadar Online Feature on Marc Mysterio (One Fund Boston)WBC's International Secretary and WBC Cares Chairwoman Jill Diamond Letter of Support for Marc Mysterio (2022)Serhiy Radchenko BoxRec recordRadchenko vs. Bivol full match on YouTubeRadchenko 2025 Press Photo provided courtesy of WBC Ukraine PR Director, Inna KostiukRadchenko on InstagramWBC Bridgerweight Rankings (Radchenko still listed as 'Silver Champion' but was stripped due to May 1st loss vs World Champion Kevin Lerena according to WBC Ukraine President's Confirmation via What'sApp)Donate to WBC CaresIBA Former Chairman's Official Letter on Marc Mysterio vs. Jake Paul (2024) -END- SOURCE: World Class Promotions
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Notre Dame Backfield Ranks Among The Nation's Best Per Lindy's Sports
Notre Dame Backfield Ranks Among The Nation's Best Per Lindy's Sports originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The rushing attack for Notre Dame in 2024 was the strength of the offense, no doubt about it. Many believe that will be the case this upcoming season and it wouldn't surprise me one bit. In 2025, the Irish return one of the best backfields in the country; Lindy's Sports agrees and ranks the Notre Dame backfield the No. 3 returning backfield in college football for this upcoming season. Advertisement Offensive coordinator, Mike Denbrock, returns his four leading rushers from the running back room heading into this season. Junior Jeremiyah Love, redshirt junior Jadarian Price, sophomore Aneyas Williams and redshirt freshman Kedren Young. As a team, the Irish ranked No. 19 in the country in rushing yards per game, No. 3 in the country in rushing touchdowns scored and No. 7 in the country in yards per attempt in 2024. Love and Price burst onto the scene last year, and as we know by know, Love is being considered the best running back in the country ahead of the 2025 season. As a unit, these four backs combined for 338 carries, 2,206 yards, averaged 6.3 yards per carry and tallied 27 touchdowns on the ground. Williams and Love combined for 48 receptions, 409 receiving yards and two touchdowns as well. This was an extremely productive and impactful group a season ago and they're expected to be the same this upcoming season. Obviously, the duo of Love and Price is arguably the best one-two punch in college football, but what sets this room apart from others is their depth. New running backs coach Ja'Juan Seider has a spoil of riches at the running back position and has six players who can all step in and play in big moments. Senior Gi'Bran Payne returned from his ACL injury this spring and is back to 100% while true freshman Nolan James Jr. is an explosive playmaker in the run and pass game. Each back possesses a unique skillset that makes them a lethal unit. Love will see the bulk of the touches this upcoming season, especially with the departure of quarterback Riley Leonard who accounted for 184 carries, 906 yards and 17 rushing touchdowns. It's likely Price will continue to rotate in the same fashion he did a season ago. Williams is slated to be their third down running back again; he's their best pass blocker and took over that role midway through his true freshman season. Young, at 5-11 235 pounds, will likely see a lot of short yardage and goal line carries, replacing what Leonard did in those situations. Advertisement With Notre Dame breaking in a new starting quarterback for the fifth year in a row as well as starting their season on the road for the fifth season in a row, the Irish backfield will have to be as dominant as ever to help the inexperienced starter get through the first two quarters of the season. If this backfield can live up to expectations this season, the Notre Dame offense will be hard to stop once again. Be sure to check out the Irish Breakdown message board, the Champions Lounge Irish Breakdown Content 2025 Depth Chart 2025 Football Schedule Notre Dame 2026 Scholarship Offers 2025 Commit Rankings - Offense 2025 Commit Rankings - Defense Advertisement 2024 Recruiting Class 2023 Recruiting Class 2022 Recruiting Class ——————— Become a premium Irish Breakdown member, which grants you access to all of our premium content and our premium message board! Click on the link below for more. BECOME A MEMBER Be sure to stay locked into Irish Breakdown all the time! Join the Irish Breakdown community! Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown YouTube channel Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown podcast on iTunes Follow me on Twitter: @TTrow5 Like and follow Irish Breakdown on Facebook Sign up for the FREE Irish Breakdown daily newsletter This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
