Connor Regan

A closer look at why the AP and Coaches Poll can’t agree on the Irish, and what it means for their playoff hopes. The AP poll is compiled from ballots submitted by more than 60 college football journalists across the country, each urged to vote without speculation or bias and to prioritize head-to-head results.

Notre Dame is known as a perennial powerhouse in football talent production and leads all college programs with the highest number of all-time NFL draft picks, totaling a staggering 538 players. The 2025 NFL draft saw six Irish players added to that list, along with three undrafted free agents, and a handful more competing for a professional roster spot.

Notre Dame Stadium is the heartbeat of the Fighting Irish football program, but its towering façade and more than 77,000 seats stand as a monument to more than football. It tells—brick by brick—how a small Catholic school in the Midwest climbed to the sport’s highest tier.

While a multitude of strategies have brought the Irish to this moment, the most striking progression has been in their new recruiting approach. Due to his experience as an elite college football player and a stint as a pro with one of the best teams in the game, Freeman has been able to recruit at a level that Brian Kelly simply couldn’t. Kelly was known for his CEO type approach to Notre Dame‘s program during his time, and Freeman couldn’t be farther from that.Every blue-chip college football p...