Notre Dame Football: Irish Down the Tree to Finish 9-3

What do we make of Notre Dame’s dominating end to the 2023 regular season?

After overcoming a bit of a slow start on the road, which was a worrisome trend all year, Notre Dame ended up doing just as they should and downed Stanford 56-23 in sleepy Palo Alto. The presentation of the game felt odd as it was occurring during the Pac 12 Network’s 3-hour funeral eulogy.

With the feeling of finality in the air and literally on it as well, Notre Dame fans were in their thoughts late last night as evidenced by the calls I took on the post-game show. Things quickly turned from Stanford to the big picture with Irish fans pondering where exactly the team finished, how they arrived there, and what comes next. All fair thoughts given a frustrating up-and-down year.

Let’s take a look at three major takeaways from the last game Notre Dame will likely ever play against a Pac 12 opponent.

Notre Dame in final group for elite California defensive back

The Irish will soon know if he joins the 2024 class

The Irish now have 25 players committed to their 2023 recruiting class but that doesn’t mean they might not add one or two more. It all really depends on who declares early for the NFL Draft or transfers.

What it doesn’t impact is the 2024 recruiting cycle, where Marcus Freeman is off to a hot start with seven commits, one of the best early classes in the country. The group has a very good early mix on offense and defense but there could be a massive addition brewing in California in safety Peyton Woodyard. The defensive back released this top 7 school and the Irish made the cut along with Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon and USC.

We will know soon if the Irish will add Woodyard to their 2024 class, as he is expected to make an announcement on January 7th at the All-American game.

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Analyzing Notre Dame’s Dominating Senior Day Send-Off

Nice win but a bit of a “too little, too late” feel, Irish fans?

There was nothing that could be done to erase the three losses that besmirched Notre Dame’s record entering Saturday’s game against Wake Forest. The best thing the Irish could do, the only thing they could do was to beat the Demon Deacons badly. They did exactly that to the tune of a 45-7 win on a send-off on senior day.

The Irish are now through 11/12 games on the schedule and will look to get in the clubhouse at 9-3 in their finale against Stanford in Palo Alto. There was a lot to like today about the Irish, but underpinning it is the frustrating thought of “too little too late” when thinking about the year in totality. Let’s take a look at some things that stand out about the last home game for the Irish in 2023.

247Sports says Notre Dame in the mix for three Top-15 2023 prospects

A trio of top 2023 prospects could end up in South Bend

The Irish just recently missed out on Sonny Styles, brother of wide receiver Lorenzo. It hurt but as an Ohio State legacy, we could have seen this coming. That doesn’t mean that the Notre Dame staff doesn’t have a few big fish they are still going after, it’s the opposite. As 247Sports updated their 2023 rankings, they looked at their Top-10 players and where they were leaning (premium). The Irish are in the mix for three of them and find out below who they are.

Notre Dame football trending to add 2025 legacy tight end

This Irish legacy might be following in his father’s footsteps

There is a certain allure that [autotag]Notre Dame football[/autotag] has for their former players and families.

More often than not, if one of your family members played or was associated with the Irish program, they tend to gravitate back to South Bend. That could very well be the case with 2025 Wisconsin tight end [autotag]James Flanigan[/autotag].

The 6-foot, 6-inch and 225-pound pass catcher bleeds blue and gold. His father Jim, played for the Irish in the early 1990’s before playing in the NFL. If 247Sports Tom Loy is correct with his crystal ball, the youngest Flanigan will join his father’s legacy and continue his playing career at Notre Dame.

Football runs in the family, James grandfather Jim, was a linebacker at Pittsburgh before making his way to the NFL. James is ranked as the No. 5 tight end and 185th overall player in the 2025 recruiting class by the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

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Notre Dame adds another 2025 prospect, Alabama edge rusher commits

The Irish added another ‘25 prospect to the class

It wasn’t all bad on Saturday night for the [autotag]Notre Dame football[/autotag] team.

The loss to Ohio State was heartbreaking, but what shouldn’t be lost in the agony was that not just one, running back Daniel Anderson, but two prospects in the 2025 recruiting class made their verbals to the Irish.

Alabama edge rusher [autotag]CJ May[/autotag] announced his commitment to Notre Dame in the midst of the game, but it was a big addition. Ranked as the No. 18 player as his position and 171st nationally according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings, the Irish beat out Clemson, Georgia, Penn State and others in May’s recruitment.

May is the fifth verbal of the 2025 Notre Dame class, which has a great balance at the moment with two players on defense and three on offense.

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Notre Dame football offers 2026 Florida quarterback

The Irish are already focused on 2026 quarterback recruiting

If there has one significant recruiting difference for [autotag]Notre Dame football[/autotag] in the [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] era, it’s at quarterback.

The Irish are starting to build a room that looks like one of the best in the country, and it all starts with recruiting. During Freeman’s first “cycle” they signed [autotag]Steve Angeli[/autotag], who is currently that backup to [autotag]Sam Hartman[/autotag]. Last year it was [autotag]Kenny Minchey[/autotag], a player who has already seen time on the field very early into his career.

The 2024 class has [autotag]CJ Carr[/autotag] committed while the 2025 class has [autotag]Deuce Knight[/autotag]. The focus is now on 2025 and the Irish offered Florida’s [autotag]Will Griffin[/autotag] on Wednesday.

The 6-foot, 3-inch and 215-pound quarterback is ranked as the No. 5 player at his position and 62nd nationally by the 247Sports Composite Rankings. The competition for Griffin’s signature will be fierce, but Notre Dame has now entered the picture.

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Notre Dame offers 2025 quarterback whose grandpa was a ‘die hard fan’

Will a family tie help the Irish?

There is something to be said about legacy offers to [autotag]Notre Dame[/autotag], there’s also stock in offering someone whose family is full of Irish fans.

The latter is the case for 2025 California quarterback [autotag]Bear Bachmeier[/autotag]. The 6-foot, 2-inch and 225 pound signal caller was offered by the Irish staff on Tuesday.

The name may look familiar, and for a good reason. Hank, Bear’s brother, was a quarterback at Boise State and is currently at Louisiana Tech. Another brother, Tiger, signed with Stanford during the 2023 cycle. Bear, however is the most talented of the three, ranking as the 9th quarterback and 153rd overall prospect according to the 247Sports composite.

Bachmeier is one of just a few 2025 quarterbacks to get a Notre Dame offer. They currently do not have a commit at the position for that class.

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Notre Dame among five schools 2025 5-star wide receiver will choose from

Will he pick the Irish on Saturday?

The [autotag]Notre Dame[/autotag] 2024 class is almost complete, but that doesn’t mean the staff isn’t look ahead to the 2025 cycle.

One of the Irish’s top wide receiver targets is Florida’s [autotag]Jaime Ffrench Jr.[/autotag], who has set up a commitment date for this coming Saturday. The 6-foot, 2-inch and 180 pound receiver will also be considering Florida State, Penn State, Alabama and Ohio State.

Ffrench Jr., is ranked extremely high, checking in as the 4th receiver and 13th overall player according to the 247Sports composite.

It would be a pretty big surprise if Ffrench Jr. did select Notre Dame, as there is just one crystal ball selection logged, and it is for the Crimson Tide.

Regardless of where Ffrench Jr. ends up committing, each of his finalists and most likely other schools, will continue to recruit him until signing day.

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Notre Dame vs Clemson: Palpable Disappointment

Maddening. Frustrating. Angering. What else?

For the most part, people were fairly understanding of Notre Dame’s struggles last year. Marcus Freeman was new on the job, there were many moving pieces on and off the field, the roster was in major flux, the schedule was challenging, etc. This year was going to be different though. Everyone was more settled in, the roster felt deeper and let’s not forget that the Irish would be led by the best transfer quarterback available this year as well.

The ultimate goal of course was to make the College Football Playoff and win games. At a minimum be in playoff contention throughout the year. But that dream perished the first weekend of October after the Irish lost Louisville’s Super Bowl at their place. If Notre Dame could run the table from there, they could at least possibly make a New Years Six game and win it. Then Clemson happened. Be honest with yourself. What big-picture goals are left to attain? There are none. That makes this year a disappointment.

Let’s examine exactly what I mean and how Notre Dame can grow from this frustrating experience moving forward.