Brian, let's switch gears here and talk about the Notre Dame defensive coaching staff here on the Irish Breakdown podcast, brought to you by our friends over at Fanduil.

And we just got done talking about the offensive coaching staff and some of the things that they have to prove and some of the questions that we have going into the 2026 season, defense is absolutely going to be a hot topic of conversation because there's some

important questions that they have to answer. Now, when you look at this group overall,

the expectations are sky high and it's understandable as to why. I put out an article,

and this is just really highlighted players in the two deep. You know, guys like Leonard Moore

and Don Schuller, they their five linebackers, the rotation

of the D-line, what it's projected to be, the incoming transfers that are going to

play a big role, DJ McKinney, Tion Gray, Francis Brew.

There's over 8,100 returning snaps of experience from just last year, just 2025.

You have a defense that is absolutely loaded with talent.

You have a cornerback that is fresh off of a unanimous All-American season as a true sophomore.

You have one of, if not the best safety tammons in the entire country,

the best and deepest rotation at linebacker in the entire country.

So the expectations, understandably so, are very, very high for this defense.

But that doesn't mean that it's worth the point now on May 19th.

We're like, yeah, let's just do what they do.

And their defense will be their defense because early on last season, it showed that we can't

just rely solely on talent. And the fact of the matter is the offense

was better in 2025 than what the defense was. No question. Very interesting side of the

ball, for sure. And I would argue that in some of the big games in 24, the offense was better than the

defense at times, or at least on the same page.

So here's the reality.

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