ESPN released their top 25 too early for 2026, and the Irish were their No. 3 team, a bit different than what we saw on On3, which ranked them a bit lower. They weren’t the same top teams either, as ESPN has Indiana, Texas, Notre Dame, Georgia and Oregon as their top five.
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Mark Schlabach, who filled out the roster, says it again looks like “the Fighting Irish should be back on the roster in 2026,” but noted it could be reduced to three games. I don’t tend to agree with him on that, since with more top opponents, the margin for error expands.
Looking ahead to Notre Dame’s schedule, they will face No. 8 Miami along with No. 11 BYU and No. 17 SMU. There should be no question about the Irish’s schedule, as there are more than enough quality games for the College Football Playoff committee to put them on the field if they win at least two of them.
I’m not going to have any complaints about ranking Notre Dame as the third-best team coming into the season, as they clearly look good.
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Where Does Notre Dame Rank in ESPN’s Too-Early CFP Top 25 for 26?