Notre Dame's Offense Still A Work In Progress, And That Is Fine

The Irish offense has looked a bit clunky at times so far in 2026, but will hit its stride when it matters most, led by a quarterback who is ready to guide the group to the next level

Sep 19, 2026; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish offensive line Will Black (74) and offensive line Guerby Lambert (76) celebrate with quarterback CJ Carr (13) after a touchdown against the Michigan State Spartans during the second half at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Michael Caterina-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Notre Dame has outscored opponents 120-23 so far this year. By any regular standard, this would be considered excellent both offensively and defensively.

But this year is different for the Irish, and the standard is title-level winning performances and consistency. And in this regard, despite the wide scoring margin and output, Notre Dame's offense is still nowhere near its full potential and has some things to clean up if it hopes to make a deep CFP run.

The Notre Dame run game is still in flux, but the running back picture is becoming clearer

Irish fans are thrilled the team is 3-0, but that doesn't mean things are perfect and no improvements are needed. The Irish run game has looked clunky at times so far this season.

The timing seems off; there's a lack of push, and it just feels a bit out of sync too often for anyone's comfort. This offensive line has new faces in new places all over it, from two new tackles to a few right guards; there's a lot that still needs to "gel" before this offense can fully take off.

The offensive line is one part of the equation; the running backs are the second. Everyone appreciates Aneyas Williams for sticking with Notre Dame when it would have been very easy to transfer somewhere else and not sit behind Jeremiah Love and JD Price. That's Irish loyalty.

The only problem with this is that Nolan James is outperforming him. James just seems to have more burst, more lateral speed, and more juice overall, most recently shown by his 125-yard outing against the Spartans. James feels like the right guy, and once that's more established moving forward, the run game will have more consistency.

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— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 20, 2026

Micah Gilbert has a breakout performance

CJ Carr needs more reliable downfield targets than just Jordan Faison. And through the first couple of games, Irish fans were waiting for one or more other receivers to emerge and fill this role.

With that in mind as the backdrop, Micah Gilbert's terrific 170-yard output, highlighted by a 61-yard bomb to start the game, was exactly what this team needed.

Carr is capable of taking this offense to heights we haven't seen in modern Notre Dame history, but he needs help. Perhaps against Purdue, Jaden Greathouse or Mylan Graham can have a night like Gilbert, or he can put on a repeat showing.

There's also the possibility that the Irish get Quincy Porter back from a knee injury later this year, which could provide a huge spark as well.

The reality is that the Notre Dame offense is very much a work in progress, and progress is being made as the team collects lopsided wins along the way. What a great, healthy place to be.