Mailbag! Notre Dame’s Preseason Hype, Most Important Players to Watch Week 1, Position Battles, and More!

Notre Dame enters the 2026 college football season with legitimate national championship expectations, but what must the Fighting Irish prove against Wisconsin to show that the preseason hype is justified? Tyler Wojciak opens the Friday mailbag by comparing this Notre Dame team to the 2024 national championship runner-up, identifying what he needs to see from CJ Carr and the Irish in Week 1 and revealing his most intriguing players to watch against Wisconsin; then, he projects Notre Dame’s captains, breaks down the kick-return battle and explains how Kedren Young and the tight ends could improve the short-yardage offense before assessing Cam Williams’ place in the wide receiver rotation; finally, Tyler explains how to interpret comments from Marcus Freeman and Mike Denbrock, dives into the challenges of evaluating tight ends in recruiting and looks ahead to his trip to Lambeau Field and a packed week of Locked On Irish coverage.