Sports

Notre Dame Quarterback Preview 2026: CJ Carr and What Exactly?

By Nick Shepkowski Sports Illustrated

Notre Dame will enter the 2026 college football season as not only one of the favorites to win the national championship, but also with a true Heisman Trophy favorite at quarterback.

CJ Carr will enter the season with the most hype of any Notre Dame quarterback since Brady Quinn in 2006, and if things go according to plan, he could very possibly be the first Fighting Irish player to win the Heisman since Tim Brown in 1987.

Overall at quarterback, what does Notre Dame have entering the 2026 season?



Here's a look at the positional depth chart as fall camp and the 2026 football season quickly approaches.

QB4 - Teddy Jarrard - True Freshman

While most high school juniors were getting ready for prom and the summer before senior year, Jarrard was busy finishing up high school to enroll a year early at Notre Dame. The highly-touted passer will be a year younger than the rest of his recruiting class so don't expect him to compete for much time this fall, but he's just as touted as Carr, if not moreso, as a recruit.

QB3 - Noah Grubbs, True Freshman

Grubbs was able to participate in spring practice unlike Jarrard so we'll start the year with him ahead on the depth chart, but don't expect him to compete for significant time, either. Grubbs led Lake Mary High School to a thrilling state championship win over Vero Beach last season, in a game that pitted Grubbs against 2027 Notre Dame recruiting commitment, quarterback Wonder Monds IV.

QB2 - Blake Herbert, Redshirt Freshman

If you couldn't tell already, Notre Dame's depth at quarterback after Carr doesn't exactly bring much experience. Hebert, by default, gets the nod from me to start the year as QB2 thanks to being the only other at the position who was on campus last season, but he hasn't taken a snap in-game at Notre Dame, either.

Worth noting , Hebert was a Clemson commitment before flipping to Notre Dame in the 2025 recruiting cycle. He wound up at Notre Dame after the Deuce Knight saga ended with him flipping his commitment to Auburn.

QB1 - CJ Carr, Redshirt Sophomore

For the first time since the 2020 season, Notre Dame will enter the year returning its starting quarterback from the season before. If you believe in a quarterback improving with a better offensive line and his offensive coordinator being back, then you should be a big believer in Carr for 2026.

Carr threw for 2,741 yards last season, with 24 touchdowns and six interceptions to boot. Although he loses the best backfield in college football behind him, the Notre Dame run game should still be a strong aid, and his receiving targets appear to be significantly improved.

If everything goes according to plan in 2026, Carr will be at worst a Heisman Trophy finalist, Notre Dame will be making another deep College Football Playoff run in large part because of him, and the grandson of legendary Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr will be among the first players selected in next spring's NFL draft.

Nick Shepkowski's Quick Takeaway

Remember when the Indianapolis Colts had Peyton Manning and Jim Sorgi was his backup?

Or when Brian Hoyer backed up Tom Brady with the New England Patriots?

That's what Notre Dame has at quarterback in 2026. It went fishing for possible veteran depth at the position this past portal season but ultimately had no takers.

Notre Dame is riding or dying with CJ Carr, as it should. The modern world of college football makes having a veteran backup a pretty rare thing, and it'll all be on Carr's shoulders at the position for 2026.

Which is just fine for Marcus Freeman and Mike Denbrock, by the way, as Carr is among the best at the position in the sport.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/notredame as Notre Dame Quarterback Preview 2026: CJ Carr and What Exactly?.

Copyright ABG-SI LLC. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a registered trademark of ABG-SI LLC. All Rights Reserved.

This story was originally published July 7, 2026 at 1:37 PM.

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