Notre Dame Backup QB Kenny Minchey Expected to Land in Big Ten

After it was announced that Kenny Minchey had lost the starting quarterback job at Notre Dame to CJ Carr, it was always clear that he was going to be on the move in the following offseason. Minchey fulfilled his role as Notre Dame's 2025 backup quarterback in model fashion. This, of course, after he challenged Carr to the very end of fall camp.

The 2025 Notre Dame quarterback competition ended up being much closer than many anticipated, with there even being some initial reports that Minchey was beating out Carr for the job. Carr eventually won out, but that shows how talented Minchey truly is. It is possible that the 2025 Notre Dame quarterback room was one of the most talented in recent history.

With that being said, early reporting from people in the know, it appears that Minchey is off to Nebraska to play for Matt Rhule. Minchey entered the portal with a "No Contact" tag, meaning he has his destination selected and it should be announced in short order.

Technically, the portal did not open until January 2 at 12:00 AM, but we would all be lying to ourselves if we didn't acknowledge that there is tampering everywhere, all the time.

Have joined @mzenitz and @TomLoy247 with a @247Sports Crystal Ball pick in favor of Nebraska for Notre Dame QB transfer Kenny Minchey.

Minchey ranks as the No. 40 overall player and No. 9 QB in the @247SportsPortal rankings. https://t.co/LUzIgdeczR pic.twitter.com/0pj1eW9ngp
— Chris Hummer (@chris_hummer) January 2, 2026

In his three seasons at Notre Dame, Minchey saw work only in mop-up duty. In many ways, he was unlucky to be in the same quarterback room and battle as CJ Carr, as Minchey was more than talented enough to start at Notre Dame.

The athletic signal-caller will have fielded many phone calls from Power Four teams, but seems to have found his landing spot in Nebraska.

2025 was Minchey's best statistical season, as he completed 20/26 passes for 196 yards through the air. He was also a threat on the ground, carrying the ball seven times for 84 yards and one touchdown scamper.

Minchey will look to come in and start for the Cornhuskers, where he will replace two year starter Dylan Raiola who has also entered the portal. He is expected to compete with TJ Lateef, the Huskers current starting QB who filled in for Raiola after he went down with a season-ending injury.

Ultimately, Minchey landing with a Big Ten team that is not a direct rival of Notre Dame is a best-case scenario for Irish fans. Like with former Notre Dame offensive lineman Rocco Spindler at Nebraska this past season, it will be nice to watch Minchey play on Saturdays for a team that fans can root for. Here's to hoping Minchey does at Nebraska what initial hope was that he'd do in South Bend.