Is 2026 Championship or Bust for Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame?

It has been since the 1988 season that Notre Dame football has claimed a national championship and with the 38th season since then approaching, the hunger is beyond intense with the Fighting Irish faithful to see that end.

37 years seasons have come and gone since then, which makes the 16 that have happened since the New York Yankees won a World Series seem like very little.

As you can imagine, the drought is weighing on many Notre Dame fans as well as the athletic department, as seemingly endless resources were put into recruiting and transfer portal efforts this winter.

That begs the question: Is it championship or bust for Marcus Freeman and the Fighting Irish in 2026?

Notre Dame Football Will be Loaded in 2026

Notre Dame has the formula to make it a preseason darling entering the 2026 season, as star quarterback CJ Carr is a national name, and head coach Marcus Freeman is beloved. That combination alone garners top 10 attention for just about anyone, let alone Notre Dame.

Factor in what Notre Dame has coming back though, and you can see why expectations are sky-high.

Yes, it loses the backfield of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price, but returns the majority of its offensive line and has a better overall group of receivers for Carr to throw to. The offense should take another step despite losing one of the best running back groups Notre Dame has ever seen.

Couple that with a defense that puts together as much talent on its defensive line that has been seen in years.

Add to the defense a set of veteran linebackers that have starred at a high level and one of the most talented secondaries in college football, and you can see why expectations are so high.

Notre Dame's Favorable Schedule for 2026

Add a mega-talented team with a favorable schedule and you can see why it's not just about getting to the playoff for Notre Dame fans in 2026.

Sept. 6 - vs. Wisconsin (Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Shamrock Series)
Sept. 12 - vs. Rice
Sept. 19 - vs. Michigan State
Sept. 26 - at Purdue
Oct. 3 - at North Carolina
Oct. 10 - vs. Stanford
Oct. 17 - at BYU
Oct. 24 - Off Week
Oct. 31 - vs. Navy (Gillette Stadium, Foxborough)
Nov. 7 - vs. Miami
Nov. 14 - vs. Boston College
Nov. 21 - vs. SMU
Nov. 28 - at Syracuse

Make no bones about it, this is a schedule that is made for Notre Dame to go 12-0 and have a case to be the top overall seed in the College Football Playoff.

Yes, Miami, fresh off a national championship appearance, comes to South Bend on November 7. That's a home game in Northern Indiana against Miami in November.

Things happen, I get it, but the expectation for Notre Dame in 2026 is to march through the regular season and finish 12-0 as long as CJ Carr is standing upright.

So, Championship or Bust for Notre Dame?

This is going to be as good of a chance as Notre Dame has at winning a national championship in some time. For the first time since Ian Book was in school, Notre Dame has a quarterback set for a second go-around, and loads of talent around him.

That said, I can't get behind the "championship or bust" mentality as a fan.

You could argue that it's never been harder to win a national championship in the last 50 years or so than it is right now.

Gone are the days of super teams, sure, but parity is at an all-time high in the sport.

Look no further than Indiana last season. The Hoosiers were very good in 2024, but even a few weeks into 2025 weren't viewed by most as any kind of threat to challenge for a title. Then it won at mighty Oregon and survived scares at Iowa and Penn State, and suddenly it was 12-0, ready to play Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship game.

We all know what happened from there as the Hoosiers finished the year 16-0 and national champions.

That's a long-winded way of saying the difference between the top team in the nation and the 10th best team in the nation hasn't been this close in a very long time.

Couple that with having to beat three top 10 teams in a row in order to win the College Football Playoff, and I can't simply look at everything as "national championship or bust".

The only thing that would be a bust for me regarding Notre Dame in 2026 is if it doesn't go 12-0 in the regular season, and isn't one of the last four teams standing in January.

Check out more of my thoughts on the "Championship or Bust" mindset that has invaded college football in the wake of the College Football Playoff below on my podcast, Fall Saturdays.