Notre Dame football made its return from spring break Wednesday for its second practice of spring football and first in two weeks.

The current team was joined by some former players in town for tomorrow’s Pro Day on campus. Joe Alt, Blake Fisher, Sam Hartman, Michael Vinson and Spencer Shrader were among those spotted at practice Wednesday morning.

Other onlookers included defensive lineman Gabriel Rubio, who is away from the team for the semester, and incoming graduate transfers Rod Heard II (Northwestern DB) and Beaux Collins (Clemson WR). The latter two are still finishing up their degrees while hanging around Notre Dame.

The players out for the spring remained sidelined: TE Mitchell Evans (knee), TE Kevin Bauman (knee), DE Aiden Gobaria, DT Armel Mukam (shoulder) and DE Loghan Thomas (shoulder).

CB Chance Tucker, who wasn’t spotted at the first practice, returned to the practice field. NB Jordan Clark was active during the first five periods available for reporters. TE Eli Raridon appeared to be limited in his reps.

Veteran defensive tackles Howard Cross III and Rylie Mills weren’t dressed for practice.

The first period focused on the field goal units. Projected starter Mitch Jeter, a transfer from South Carolina, hit 7 of his 8 attempts with the lone miss coming from 31 yards out after it hit the left upright. He made kicks from 51, 41, 29, 30, 26, 45 and 39.

In individual drills on the defensive end, the players rotated through a series of tackling and block shedding techniques. As the groups split into more position-specific work, defensive coordinator Al Golden and special teams coordinator Marty Biagi worked with the safeties.

As to be expected, the depth chart on the offensive side didn’t seem to be any different from the first practice. However, when the whole offense came together in period five to run through some plays, Steve Angeli took the first-team reps at QB.

The first-team offensive line remained the same with LT Charles Jagusah, LG Pat Coogan, C Ashton Craig, RG Billy Schrauth and RT Tosh Baker. The second unit lined up with LT Sullivan Absher, LG Sam Pendleton, C Joe Otting, RG Rocco Spindler and RT Aamil Wagner. The third unit was LT Styles Prescod, LG Peter Jones, C Anthonie Knapp, RG Chris Terek and RT Ty Chan.

The WRs continued to be drilled in specific roles with Kris Mitchell, KK Smith and Cam Williams to the field, Jayden Thomas, Deion Colzie and Micah Gilbert to the boundary and Jaden Greathouse and Jayden Harrison in the slot. Lacrosse player Jordan Faison didn’t appear to be practicing.

We’re set to talk to offensive line coach Joe Rudolph, defensive line coach Al Washington and a few players from their position groups here shortly.

Notre Dame is in the mix for many of the top quarterbacks in the country.

Story from @Adam Gorney

Notre Dame women's basketball will make its NCAA Tournament run without starting forward Kylee Watson on the court. Watson and and head coach Niele Ivey shared Sunday night that Watson suffered a torn ACL in the win over Virginia Tech in the ACC Tournament semifinal.

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Earlier on Tuesday, Notre Dame football extended an offer to 2026 cornerback Davon Benjamin.

Benjmain, who attends Westlake Village (Calif.) Oaks Christian, is a four-star per Rivals. He is ranked as the No. 56 overall player in the 2026 class.

The 5-foot-11, 167-pound Benjmain holds 15 total offers including Alabama, Georgia, Oregon, Tennessee, USC and Washington.

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Sporting News First Team All-Americans
Caitlin Clark, Iowa
6-0, Sr. G

Key stats: 31.9 ppg, 8.9 apg, 7.3 rpg, 5.2 3pg

Defining game: 49 points, 13 assists, 9-of-18 3-point shooting in 106-89 win over Michigan.

Overview: One year ago, Clark swept the national player of the year awards and led Iowa to the brink of a national title. She seemed to take that as a challenge to do even better in her senior season. She leads the NCAA in points and assists per game. She set attendance records at arenas across the country. She broke Kelsey Plum’s career scoring record – and then Lynette Woodard’s, and then Pete Maravich’s. So no matter what happens in the NCAA Tournament, the results are in: Clark has produced one of the most transcendent seasons in the history of women’s college basketball.

JuJu Watkins, USC
6-2, Fr. G

Key stats: 27.0 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 2.4 spg

Defining game: 51 points, 11 rebounds, 4 steals in 67-58 win against Stanford.

Overview: One of the top recruits of the class of 2023, Watkins decided to stay close to home with USC. Already her decision is paying off for the Trojans, who won their conference tournament for the first time since 2014 behind their native star. Watkins is second only to Caitlin Clark in scoring, and she already owns a host of USC records, including: most 30-point games in a single season (13), most points in a single game (51) and most points as a freshman (810 and counting). Don’t let Clark’s historic year overshadow Watkins’ all-time great freshman season.

Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame
5-6, Fr. G

Key stats: 23.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 5.5 apg, 4.6 spg

Defining game: 34 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists in 82-67 win against UConn.

Overview: Hidalgo announced herself on the international stage, dropping 31 points in her NCAA debut – which came in Paris, in a game against powerhouse South Carolina. The Irish played the entire season without star guard Olivia Miles, who is still recovering from a knee injury suffered at the end of the 2022-23 season. But Hidalgo stepped in seamlessly, sitting in the top three in the nation in scoring and first in steals. And when Miles and Hidalgo team up next year, watch out world.

Cameron Brink, Stanford
6-4, Sr. F

Key stats: 17.8 ppg, 12.0 rpg, 3.5 bpg

Defining game: 25 points, 24 rebounds, 4 assists in 67-63 win against Oregon State.

Overview: On a deep Cardinal team, Brink averages just 25.6 minutes per game – but she makes full use of every one. With a solid case for best two-way player in the country, Brink leads her team in rebounds, steals and blocks per game – and she’s second in points and rebounds. Plus, she has 19 double-doubles, so her Pac-12 player of the year and defensive player of the year awards should come as no surprise – and neither should her status as a soon-to-be WNBA draft lottery pick.

Liz Kitley, Virginia Tech
6-6, Gr. C

Key stats: 22.8 ppg, 11.4 rpg, 2.1 bpg, 55.6% FG

Defining game: 34 points, 12 rebounds, 76.5% FG in 61-56 win against Duke.

Overview: After Kitley helped lead the Hokies to the Final Four in 2023, she returned for a fifth year under head coach Kenny Brooks looking to run it back. She won the ACC player of the year award for the third consecutive season, joining Alana Beard and Alyssa Thomas as the only players to do so. The knee injury she sustained during the final game of the regular season underlined her importance to her team, which suffered a blowout loss to Notre Dame in the ACC tournament in her absence.

Sporting News Second-Team All-Americans

Angel Reese, LSU
6-3, Sr. F

Paige Bueckers, UConn
6-0, Jr. G

Kamilla Cardoso, South Carolina
6-7, Sr. C

Raegan Beers, Oregon State
6-4, So. F

Jacy Sheldon, Ohio State
5-10, Gr. G


Sporting News Third-Team All-Americans

Ayoka Lee, Kansas State
6-6, Sr. C

Dyaisha Fair, Syracuse
5-5, Gr. G

Alissa Pili, Utah
6-2, Sr. F

Aaliyah Edwards, UConn
6-3, Sr. F

Madison Booker, Texas
6-1, Fr. F

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One of the fastest players Notre Dame football added to its board in the 2026 recruiting class on Sunday's Pot of Gold Day was Brandon Arrington out of La Mesa (Calif.) Mount Miguel.

Notre Dame plans to recruit Arrington at both wide receiver and cornerback. Arrington reports 21 offers including Alabama, Arizona, Arizona State, Nebraska, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas A&M, San Diego State and Utah.

Arrington is a four-star recruit and debuted as the No. 128 overall player in Tuesday's Rivals250. Arrington is listed at 6-foot-3, 175-pounds, and recorded 25 tackles including 18 solo last season. He also had 14 receptions for 310 yards and four touchdowns and returned a punt for a touchdown.

Inside ND Sports spoke with Arrington to get his perspective on Notre Dame, what the offer meant, visit plans and his play style.

On his Pot of Gold Day offer:

"I was excited because I know a lot of history of Notre Dame and the football players who went there and went to the NFL and into the NFL Hall of Fame," Arrington said.

More on the Irish:

"I know a lot of their success on getting players to the league and players doing good in the league. I want to learn how they run their program and want to learn about the coaching staff and build a big bond ... to keep in touch. They're a good academic school and they most likely have every major so I know I can have my major and degree going to Notre Dame."

On how his skillset would impact a program:

"I can pretty much do everything on the field ... colleges like my talent because I have speed and college-like speed."

Per his X/Twitter bio, Arrington runs a 4.38 40-yard dash and has clocked times of 10.58 seconds in the 100-meter and 21.29 seconds in the 200-meter.

Arrington has never traveled to the Midwest for a college visit but said Notre Dame is on the list he wants to see this spring. He has visited San Diego State three times in his recruitment.

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Javian Mallory was one of several running backs to receive offers from Notre Dame football on Pot of Gold Day.

Mallory, a four-star out of Boca Raton (Fla.) West Boca Raton, reports 24 total offers and is ranked as the No. 109 overall player in the new Rivals250.

While in-state schools Florida State and Miami (Fla.) are heavily involved early, Mallory said he's willing to listen to all schools no matter the proximity to his home state of Florida. Ohio State, Syracuse and Wisconsin are some more schools sticking out to Mallory at the moment, and the Irish are someone the 6-foot-0, 200-pound recruit wants to learn more about in the coming months.

Inside ND Sports caught up with Mallory to learn about his communication with ND, reaction to the offer, how seriously he will consider the Irish moving forward and more.

Mallory said he'd been in talks with ND's recruiting staff leading up to the offer and couldn't wait until it was finally Pot of Gold Day so he could announce the news.

"I was real excited when the day finally hit and got on the phone with [head] Coach [Marcus] Freeman and coach McCullough," Mallory told Inside ND Sports. "It feels great to know that I’m a priority for such a prestigious university like Notre Dame early on."

Mallory has yet to schedule a visit but said his interest is real because of the academics, NFL development and the growing relationship with associate head coach/running backs coach Deland McCullough. Mallory said he talks with McCullough about every week and loves his resume.

"They just put out Kyren Williams a couple [of] years ago, Audric Estimé entering the draft this year and Jeremiyah Love producing good numbers as a freshman. Notre Dame is doing a good job with their running backs."

Last season, Mallory rushed for 1,415 yards and 18 touchdowns while also catching 22 passes for 438 yards and six touchdowns. Mallory said he's a do-it-all back and capable of changing the pace of the game by himself with short, inside runs and then breaking off for a run 75 yards the very next play.

Mallory visited Miami earlier this month and is scheduled to visit Syracuse April 12-14.

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Following Pot of Gold Day and the release of the first Rivals250 for the 2026 class, Notre Dame has now offered half of the recruits ranked in the top 100 by Rivals.

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Notre Dame football has landed its first commitment in the 2026 recruiting class.

On Sunday, 2026 wide receiver Dylan Faison reported an Irish offer on Pot of Gold Day.

Dylan, the younger brother of Jordan Faison, wasted little time and announced his verbal commitment to Notre Dame for football and men's lacrosse on Monday via Instagram. He is a three-star per Rivals.

"Honestly the main reason why I committed today was the feeling of support that the Irish community gave me and my family, and I truly believe that Notre Dame is the best option for life after sports," Faison told Inside ND Sports.

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From Rivals national recruiting director @Adam Gorney:

European football will be back in Notre Dame Stadium.

Quick story with more to come:

With Jerome Bettis Jr. in the class, the spotlight turns to Derek Meadows as the coveted receiver remaining for Notre Dame.

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I asked Bettis the other day who he was going to reach out to at wide receiver:

“One guy I’ll make sure I reach out to and be sure he knows that we want him is Derek Meadows.”

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Rivals national recruiting analyst @Greg Smith has the latest in Notre Dame 2025 wide receiver target Talyn Taylor's recruitment.

“I’m evaluating the development of the players. That’s a big thing for me,” Taylor said.

“I want to get developed somewhere that I can win a Heisman or can win a national championship. That’s what I’m looking for. I want to win, I want to be a great receiver and a great team.”

Taylor, a four-star recruit out of Geneva (Ill.) High, plans to visit Notre Dame on April 6.

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Join us at 7 p.m. EDT on YouTube as @Eric Hansen and I go live for the next weekly edition of "Football Never Sleeps."

We'll discuss Notre Dame adding a commitment from three-star wide receiver Jerome Bettis Jr., the impact of Notre Dame's Pot of Gold Day for the 2026 class, and projecting wide receiver and linebacker development during ND's spring football while answering questions from viewers.

Football Never Sleeps is sponsored by Legacy Heating & Air.

We hope you join us live with questions or submit some ahead of time. Hit the bell to set a reminder to get notified when we go live.

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If you'd like to submit questions, make sure you click through so you're watching on YouTube's site or in the YouTube app if you're on mobile. You can do so by clicking the headline at the top of the embedded video above. So where it says "Football Never Sleeps: ..." Or there should be spot that says "Watch on YouTube" in the bottom left.

Then to submit questions, there's a chat box to the right of the video on desktop or below the video on mobile.

Click here to subscribe to Inside ND Sports on YouTube.

Following Notre Dame football's expansion of the 2026 recruiting board on Sunday's annual Pot of Gold Day recruiting event, Inside ND Sports will group all of the current 2026 targets (new and old) in this thread and include if they acknowledge Pot of Gold Day or not.

We will start our position-by-position breakdown with the quarterback position. No new quarterback targets reported offers on Pot of Gold Day.

Of the seven current quarterback targets, three acknowledged that it was Pot of Gold Day:

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The following quarterbacks hold offers from Notre Dame but did not post or acknowledge Pot of Gold Day.

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Jerome Bettis Jr. is Irish.

Inside ND Sports spoke to the Bettis Jr. to discuss his commitment to Notre Dame.

Story:


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Earlier on Friday, Notre Dame 2025 safety target JaDon Blair trimmed his list down to a top 10.

Notre Dame made the cut along with Penn State, Florida State, Michigan, Louisville, Virginia Tech, Miami (Fla.), Wake Forest, South Carolina and Maryland.

Blair, a four-star recruit, is the No. 26 safety in the 2025 recruiting class. He visited campus for the Ohio State game last September and has set an official visit for June 11-13.

In March and April, Blair has set unofficial visits to Penn State, Michigan and South Carolina. He also set official visits dates with Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Michigan and Penn State.

The 6-foot-4, 185-pound recruit out of Winston Salem (N.C.) Mount Tabor is listed as Hot on The Heat Index by Inside ND Sports.

As a junior, Blair had 57 tackles (42 solo), four interceptions, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.

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A day after its annual Pot of Gold Day recruiting event, Notre Dame football is remaining active on the recruiting trail in the 2026 recruiting class.

Four-star Deshonne Redeaux reported an Irish offer on Monday. He is the No. 70 overall player in the Rivals100.

The 5-foot-10, 175-pound Redeaux attends Westlake Village (Calif.) Oaks Christian. He is listed as an athlete, a designation for a multi-positional prospect.

Notre Dame is Redeaux's 16th offer and joins a list that includes Alabama, Georgia, Miami (Fla.), Oklahoma, Oregon, Tennessee, UCLA and USC. Most schools are recruiting Redeaux as a running back.

As a sophomore, Redeaux turned 49 carries into 439 yards and five touchdowns (six games played).

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Rivals is releasing its new rankings for the 2026 class. First is the five-star recruits today. On Tuesday, the first Rivals250 for the 2026 class will be unveiled.

Three recruits received new five-star ratings today. All three have Notre Dame offers. Quarterbacks Brady Smigiel and Ryder Lyons were previously offered by the Irish. LB Tyler Atkinson added a Notre Dame yesterday on Pot of Gold Day.

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Also: Five-star countdown

MONTEREY PARK, Calif. – Nevada 2026 outside linebacker Kenneth Goodwin is a name to know. The defender wanted to compete in the Rivals Camp Series this year to show his talents and what he’s made of.

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He’s been working hard this offseason to improve his game and regain his form.

“I’ve been working on getting my speed back right because I had a little injury on my lower body,” Goodwin said. “So just getting bigger, faster and stronger.”

Right now, he counts Notre Dame, Alabama, Georgia, UCLA, Texas, Texas A&M and Ole Miss as the schools recruiting him the hardest right now. He’s got visits planned to a few of those schools already.

Goodwin will visit Notre Dame on April 6. Then, April 9 and 10 he’ll go to Alabama and Auburn. He’ll also hit Georgia from April 11-13 for the spring game. I’ve got an eye on that relationship with the Notre Dame staff.

“Me and linebackers Coach (Max) Bullock have a very good relationship on the phone,” Goodwin said.” “I really love him for sure.”

In the end, Goodwin’s recruitment is going to come down to one thing.

“Development. That’s the number one priority. Nothing over that,” Goodwin said.”

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Take it for what it's worth, but here's what Ironton (Ohio) High's football program says Shaun Terry runs:

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@EdgyTim caught up with Country Club Hills (Ill.) Hillcrest defensive end McHale Blade after his offer from Notre Dame on Sunday. The Irish are target Blade as a potential defensive tackle in the 2026 class.

Story:


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Former Notre Dame running backs coach Tony Alford will reportedly leave Ohio State after nine seasons to coach for rival Michigan. He's walking away from quite the RB duo at Ohio State right now in TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins.

FootballScoop and ESPN's Pete Thamel have been reporting on this.

Update: Already official from Michigan.