Notre Dame and Miami haven't met on a football field since 2017. This time both programs show up with something real to prove.
Bush’s Picks
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OverUnder
Best BetMiami
Miami shows up with the deeper overall roster and the more proven transfer quarterback in Darian Mensah, who's already won an ACC title with this exact formula. Notre Dame's O-line is thinner than it was a year ago with Charles Jagusah out for the season. That gap in overall firepower is enough to lean Miami here even on the road.
Miami
+Preseason ACC favorite, projected No. 1 CFP seed
+Transfer QB Mensah threw 34 TDs at Duke
+Loaded skill corps: Barkate, Toney, Fletcher
−First year integrating a transfer quarterback
−True road environment at Notre Dame Stadium
−Camp bodies (Pringle, Brown) banged up this spring
Notre Dame
+CJ Carr returns after a 2,741-yard, 24-TD debut
+Ranked No. 3 in ESPN's preseason computer model
+Deep receiver room plus two Ohio State transfers
−Missed the Playoff outright last season
−Charles Jagusah out for the year on the O-line
−Kedren Young, Quincy Porter still working back
This one comes loaded. Notre Dame missed the Playoff last season despite the talent, and CJ Carr has already set the tone for 2026: "Leave no doubt." Miami, meanwhile, is coming off a trip to the national title game and enters the fall as the ACC's presumptive favorite. Neither side is treating this like a random November crossover.
Notre Dame's stability starts under center. Carr is back after a debut season of 2,741 yards and a 24-to-6 touchdown-to-interception ratio, the first time the Irish have returned their starter since 2020. But the offensive line took a real hit this offseason: Charles Jagusah is undergoing a fifth surgery after a UTV accident and won't be available, while Kedren Young is still working his way back from injury and isn't expected for spring reps. That's a program leaning on continuity at quarterback while patching depth up front.
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MIA Miami
ND Notre Dame
Miami's answer is Darian Mensah, the Duke transfer who threw 34 touchdowns against just 6 interceptions while leading the Blue Devils to an ACC title. He inherited his top target too — Cooper Barkate followed him from Duke after a 1,106-yard, 7-touchdown season — and pairs with Malachi Toney and 1,000-yard rusher Mark Fletcher to give Mario Cristobal one of the country's more complete offenses. Some camp bodies are banged up (Girard Pringle Jr. and CharMar Brown both missed spring), but the top of the roster is loaded.
Miami Hurricanes
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Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
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Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
Notre Dame isn't hurting for skill talent either. Jordan Faison led the team in receiving last season, Jaden Greathouse was a standout in the 2024 title game, and the Irish added Ohio State transfers Mylan Graham and Quincy Porter to an already stacked room — though Porter himself is still working back from a knee injury suffered at Ohio State. It sets up a shootout look on paper: two of the sport's deepest receiver corps trying to out-execute each other.
Miami Hurricanes
Oct 30?@ North Carolina—
Oct 16?vs Florida State—
Oct 2?@ Clemson—
Sep 26?vs Central Michigan—
Sep 18?@ Wake Forest—
Sep 10?vs Florida A&M—
Sep 4?@ Stanford—
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Oct 31?@ Navy—
Oct 16?@ BYU—
Oct 10?vs Stanford—
Oct 2?@ North Carolina—
Sep 25?@ Purdue—
Sep 19?vs Michigan State—
Sep 12?vs Rice—
Sep 6?vs Wisconsin—
Recent form.
The history here is the hook that made this whole rivalry famous. Notre Dame leads the all-time series 17-8-1, but Miami owns the two most recent meetings, including a 41-8 blowout in 2017. Nobody's selling T-shirts for this one the way they did in 1988, but with Miami projected as the ACC's top seed and Notre Dame ranked No. 3 in ESPN's preseason computer model, this rematch doesn't need manufactured hype. It's a Playoff-contender measuring stick, full stop.
