Fab Five? Notre Dame Players Earn Preseason All-American Recognition

Brenden Duffy
Jul 12
4 min read

With 50 days until a new season kicks off, five Notre Dame Fighting Irish football stars have earned preseason All-American nods from at least one national magazine. We look at the select group projected to have stellar years below:

Photos via Notre Dame Athletics

RB Jeremiyah Love - First Team per Lindy’s, Athlon, and Phil Steele

The face of the Irish offense is one of two Notre Dame players who earned unanimous preseason All-American honors. Junior Jeremiyah Love enters this season looking to build off a monster year in 2024-25. During the National Championship season, Love rushed for over 1,100 yards and 17 touchdowns on 6.9 yards per carry, the sixth-most in the nation. Looking ahead, Love has received some preseason Heisman Trophy talk with 50:1 odds to bring home the prestigious honor. These odds are the best for a running back and second-best among all non-quarterbacks. With a repeat performance of last year, Love will become Notre Dame’s first running back selected in the first round of the NFL Draft since 1993 when Jerome Bettis was taken tenth overall.

CB Leonard Moore - First Team per Lindy’s, Athlon, and Phil Steele

The lockdown sophomore defensive back comes as the second Irish player to earn unanimous preseason All-American honors. In an unexpected but welcome fantastic freshman year, Moore made ten starts and appeared in every contest. He finished the year with 48 tackles, two interceptions, two forced fumbles, and a team-leading 11 pass breakups. In recognition of his efforts, Moore was named the FWAA Freshman Defensive Player of the Year. According to PFF, among cornerbacks with at least 100 snaps in coverage, the former three-star recruit ranked 14th in the FBS, allowing just 26 receptions for 293 yards and two touchdowns on 56 targets. With a full season of starting time ahead of him, expect Moore to stake his claim as the best cover corner in college football this year.

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OL Aamil Wagner - Second Team per Athlon

Last year, Notre Dame was repeatedly battered by injuries in the trenches, forcing new starters, different units, and a lot of uncertainty when it came time to face “big dogs” like Georgia and Penn State with Abdul Carter. However, the one constant was always at right tackle, Aamil Wagner, who started every game last year. The junior is a good pass protector, having allowed just two sacks on 529 pass block snaps, but he will make his money as a run blocker. If Wagner stacks another healthy and solid season, he will hear his name called earlier rather than later come NFL Draft time.

LB Drayk Bowen - Third Team per Athlon, Fourth Team per Phil Steele

It is nice to see the junior tackling machine earn some love this preseason after starting every game a year ago. Bowen finished third on the team in tackles with 78, including at least one in each game, and led the Irish with three forced fumbles. The linebacker is already extremely well-rounded, a noticeable force against the run and pass, and should receive the appropriate national attention now, given Jack Kiser’s departure to the NFL.

WR Malachi Fields - Fourth Team per Phil Steele

The 6-4 transfer from Virginia rounds out this list of Irish players to earn preseason All-American mentions. Over the last two seasons at UVA, Fields totaled 113 catches for 1,619 yards and ten touchdowns, earning Third Team All-ACC honors last year. In a 35-14 loss at Notre Dame last season, Fields led all receivers with 81 yards on four receptions. With improved quarterback play, the transfer weapon has a chance to crack 1,000 yards this season before entering the NFL.

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Snubs: WR Jaden Greathouse, S Adon Shuler

I would not say either of these two are ‘obvious’ snubs, but they each deserve some preseason love in my opinion. Greathouse is harder to project, given a new quarterback and his general up-and-down trends. The receiver was fantastic against Penn State and Ohio State, totaling 13 receptions for 233 yards and three touchdowns. However, in the five games before the CFP Semifinal, Greathouse combined for just 6 catches for 49 yards and no scores. He does not need to go for 100 yards every week, but some solid consistency would be more than appreciated in this season’s Irish offense.

Somewhat like Bowen, I believe Shuler should be in line to start receiving more national attention now that the star of the position group, Xavier Watts, is in the NFL. Last year, the safety started each game and finished the season with 59 tackles, fourth-most on the team, three interceptions, including a pick-six, a forced fumble against Georgia, and, just for good measure, a blocked kick. If Shuler can clean up his tackling issues, he should be in line to be a true leader of another stout Irish defense.