Notre Dame’s run to the 2025 National Championship game was impressive enough in real time, but the recent NFL Draft made it even clearer just how remarkable the Irish’s playoff run truly was. Without a single first-round pick or a player selected in the top 50 this year, Marcus Freeman’s team battled its way past star-studded rosters and came within one win of a national title. The Draft didn’t expose Notre Dame — it validated everything the Irish built.
Draft Results Highlight Notre Dame’s Overachievement
Notre Dame did not have a single player drafted in the first round of the Draft. They didn’t even have one taken in the first 50 picks. Their opponent in January, Ohio State, had seven players selected in the top 45. It wasn’t until pick number 53 that someone from Notre Dame heard their name called. And when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected Benjamin Morrison with the 53rd pick in the second round, there still hadn’t been a player who suited up in the title game for Notre Dame selected since Morrison missed the title game because of his season-ending injury.
| Player | Position | Round | Overall Pick | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benjamin Morrison | CB | 2 | 53 | Tampa Bay |
| Xavier Watts | S | 3 | 96 | Atlanta |
| Jack Kiser | LB | 4 | 107 | Jacksonville |
| Rylie Mills | DT | 5 | 142 | Seattle |
| Mitchell Evans | TE | 5 | 163 | Carolina |
| Riley Leonard | QB | 6 | 189 | Indianapolis |
It wasn’t until pick #96 overall that a player who played in the title game for Notre Dame heard their name called. Of the six players listed above, only four were available for Notre Dame when they attempted to end their national championship drought and came up short.
Now, there are always caveats with stories, and the big caveat here is that a lot of Notre Dame’s high-end talent, from an NFL perspective, was either not eligible to be drafted or didn’t come out for the Draft this year. Jeremiyah Love is just entering his junior year, and if he replicates his 2024 campaign this fall, he almost certainly will be a first-round pick in 2026.
Still, even if more players who played for the Irish in the title game eventually get selected in the first or second rounds of the Draft, it will only highlight how Notre Dame got to the championship game without much star power in their upper classes. Instead, Notre Dame’s run was powered by rising underclass stars and through player development and program culture.
Ohio State’s Draft Haul Shows Just How Big the Challenge Was
The contrast with Ohio State’s roster could not be more stark. Unlike Notre Dame, Ohio State had the most talented roster that money could buy in 2024 – literally. The Buckeyes went on a spending spree and loaded up their roster years after Ryan Day moaned in press conferences about not having enough NIL funds. Not only did it have a positive ROI for their team by winning the championship, but it also had positive ROI for all of their players as well, with a ridiculous 14 Buckeyes getting selected in the Draft last week.
Some will argue that the talent gap wasn’t that large because Notre Dame returns a lot of talent and a lot of players who started in the title game will eventually get selected, but that underscores the fact that Notre Dame faced an opponent that just had more first round picks in one Draft than Notre Dame has had in the previous seven drafts combined.
Winning with Development, Not Draft Stock
Some will argue that this proves that Notre Dame’s run to the title game was a fluke and the Irish won’t be back. On the contrary, it highlights the focus on development and culture that Marcus Freeman has focused on since taking over from Brian Kelly before the 2022 season. Having a talent gap in a title game or major bowl is nothing new for Notre Dame. When Kelly took Notre Dame to the title game in 2012, the Irish faced a roster that might have been able to beat an NFL team or two. The difference, however, is that from a physicality, size, and athleticism perspective, the Irish looked like they belonged this time. In 2012, Alabama towered over Notre Dame, and that game was over before it started.
Both Notre Dame and Ohio State had some key injuries during January’s showdown; the difference was that Ohio State’s roster was much deeper, and it could sustain its losses more easily. The problem with winning with culture and development is that when your starters go down, you aren’t necessarily flush with replacements ready to step in and play at the same level.
Notre Dame’s Next Wave: NFL Stars in the Making
Love isn’t the only underclassmen who looks headed toward being an early NFL Draft pick at some point. Sophomore to be Leonard Moore has future first-round pick written all over him, but thankfully, he has at least two more seasons in South Bend before hearing his name called. Young defensive linemen Boubacar Traore and Bryce Young have the measurables and tools to be high draft picks, but they have a lot more developing to do. Traore was also sidelined in the Natty.
Among Notre Dame’s offensive linemen, Charles Jagusah, Aamil Wagner, and Billy Schrauth all could be high selections if they continue developing as they are – and that doesn’t account for Notre Dame’s incoming freshman class of OL headlined by 5-star prospect Will Black.
Notre Dame’s young linebacking corps will also likely end up producing a few high picks before all is said and done, even though the NFL has deprioritized the position as a whole outside of linebackers that have EDGE rushing potential.
The Stars Are Coming to South Bend
Skeptics will look at Notre Dame’s lack of high-end NFL talent and say that all it does is validate that Notre Dame’s run to the title game was a “fluke” and that this success isn’t sustainable without increasing the production of NFL talent. They’d be half right, too, because without continuing to increase the talent level across the roster, runs like 2024 will be the exception, not the norm for the Irish, much like Notre Dame’s 2012 run turned out to be more of an exception for Brian Kelly.
The good news for Notre Dame fans is that Freeman and his staff have been on fire on the recruiting trail and have parlayed their appearance in the title game into a run of commitments on the recruiting trail. Notre Dame currently sits at #2 in the 247Sports team rankings with just 14 commitments. The top-ranked Southern Cal Trojans have 27 commitments, artificially boosting their rankings. At Notre Dame’s current pace, the Irish are poised for their first top-5 recruiting finish since 2013.
Notre Dame could add to their haul with 4-star DL Tiki Hola and 4-star RB Jonaz Walton scheduled to announce where they are committing on Saturday and Wednesday. Notre Dame is considered the odds-on favorite for Walton and the favorite for Hola, though his decision still seems more up in the air compared to Walton’s.
Of Notre Dame’s 14 commitments for the class of 2026, 12 of them are at least 4-star prospects in the 247 Composite – that kind of blue chip ratio will lead to better NFL Drafts for the Irish.
Notre Dame Proved It Belonged — And Its Best Days Are Ahead
Unlike how TCU got their doors blown off in the Natty a few years ago, Notre Dame proved it belonged by fighting back and clawing their way back against Ohio State despite a list of injuries longer than a CVS receipt and facing an opponent with a clear talent gap. For Notre Dame to do more than put up a fight next time, though, the Irish need to continue to upgrade the roster. Fortunately for Notre Dame fans, that is precisely what Marcus Freeman and his staff are doing on the heels of their magical run to the title game.
