Notre Dame Loses Al Washington, and What the Irish Do Next

Shortly after Irish fans got used to the idea that Mike Mickens would no longer be running Notre Dame's defensive backfield as he heads to the NFL, former defensive line coach Al Washington , who was about to handle the linebackers, announced his plans to do the same as he heads to the Dolphins.

While it always makes fans a bit uneasy to lose productive staff members, overall Notre Dame has done a wonderful job regarding retention.

Sure, losing Mickens stings given how elite his position group has been, but look at the Irish roster.

Other than NFL draft entries, the only Notre Dame player who left to play somewhere else who was a big-time contributor in 2025 was Joshua Burnham, and he's been replaced by the uber-talented Keon Keeley. This is a great sign. Players want to be in South Bend and stay in South Bend, and that's a big compliment to what Marcus Freeman has built.

Why did Mickens and Washington leave for the NFL?

One question Irish fans ask themselves is why coaches would leave Notre Dame? In the case of Mickens and Washington, both have been in the mix for roles outside of Notre Dame the last couple of hiring cycles, which indicates to me that both have been ready for another coaching challenge for some time now. This just is what it is.

In no way do these moves indicate to me that there's an issue with Notre Dame or how Freeman runs his program. I think this is just a case of guys wanting to do something different, which is totally understandable.

What I do find interesting about both of these moves is that they were both made to the NFL, not other colleges. The college football grind never ends; it's a 24/7 365 deal in the way the NFL is not. I think that this dynamic is becoming more appealing to college-level coaches as the craziness of the portal and NIL becomes more intense by the year.

BREAKING: @NDFootball is losing veteran defensive assistant Al Washington to the @NFL's @MiamiDolphins, sources tell @FootballScoop. Full story here: https://t.co/yrwMUzl7ot
— John Brice (@JohnDBrice1) January 30, 2026

Where does Notre Dame go from here?

Notre Dame should have no trouble at all finding suitable candidates for both Mickens' and Washington's roles. The Irish defense is loaded with talent in both the linebacking room and secondary. I'm confident Freeman will hire terrific high-level coaches very soon.

While Mickens' levels of production and NFL draft picks will be hard to replace, I'm very excited about the defensive line and linebacker areas.

New defensive line coach Charlie Partridge comes to South Bend with a terrific reputation for recruiting and development, and now Notre Dame can find the same for the backer position.

Notre Dame is in a terrific spot as a program right now. Marcus Freeman has one of the most talented rosters in the country, and assistant coaches want to be a part of it. I can't wait to see who Marcus Freeman tabs to fill these key roles heading into a season with sky-high expectations.