"Built by Believers" - Notre Dame Basketball Tips Off Year Four of the Shrewsberry Era in Rome
Entering year four of the Micah Shrewsberry era, the Notre Dame Basketball program seems to carry an awkward, tense aura.
REUTERS/Remo Casilli
Eternal City Tip-Off
All eyes will be on Shrewsberry’s squad on Sunday morning when his Fighting Irish tip off the 2026-27 college basketball season with the Villanova Wildcats at 9:30 AM EST in Rome, Italy, in the Palazzo dello Sport, host of the 1960 Summer Olympics Gold Medal Game. This historic game came together through Notre Dame and Villanova’s collaboration to bring “two of the nation’s preeminent Catholic universities for competition.”
Formerly Big East rivals, the Irish and Wildcats have not met since 2016, when Josh Hart dropped a career-high 37 points in a comeback win for, at the time, number-one-ranked Villanova at the Prudential Center in New Jersey.
The two sides enter this season projected to go on separate paths. Notre Dame is expected to finish bottom-three in the ACC according to the conference’s preseason poll, which would mean another conference tournament miss for the Irish under Shrewsberry. As for Villanova, they have been picked to finish third in the Big East and received votes in the preseason AP Poll. Some players to keep an eye on for Villanova are Guard Tyler Perkins, the team’s leading scorer from a year ago; transfer Forwards Kwame Evans Jr. and Devin Royal; and freshman Center Luigi Suigo, who will be back in his home country for this matchup.
Roster Breakdown
Following a 13-18 2025-26 campaign, Coach Shrewsberry’s squad underwent some major renovations, mostly via the portal. Below is a refresher on who is gone, who remains, and who is new to the program this winter:
Who is Gone
Markus Burton → Indiana
Jalen Haralson → Tennessee
Cole Certa → Clemson
Ryder Frost → George Washington
Garrett Sundra → James Madison
Sir Mohammed → Penn
Kebba Njie → no eligibility remaining
Carson Towt → no eligibility remaining
Matthew MacLellan → no eligibility remaining
Who is Still Here
Brady Koehler
Braeden Shrewsberry
Tommy Ahneman
Logan Imes
Brady Stevens
Luke Devine
Who is New
Braeden Smith - Gonzaga transfer
Bryce Ruglass Dortch - Rutgers transfer
Devin Brown - Davidson transfer
Ethan Roberts - Penn transfer
Logan Duncomb - Winthrop transfer
Yoro Diallo - UVA-Wise transfer
Jonathan Sanderson - Freshman
Nick Shrewsberry - Freshman
Gan-Erdene Salongo - Freshman
Jake Burow - Freshman
Coach Shrewsberry’s response to the following question at this year’s ACC Media Day best encapsulates what he hopes for this group, and the program overall:
Q: “You guys (Notre Dame) have a record nine straight home games from the end of November after you get back from your Rome trip until the beginning of January. What are you hoping is the product put on the court for your home fans in that month?”
A: “Yeah, that's big. And you know…you look at the schedule, you see those home games, it's a chance for us to really build some momentum. And we've talked about with our team this year, our theme is built by believers. And the guys that stayed believed in what we were doing. The guys that came in really believed in what we were talking about and believe that they can help Notre Dame. We need some believers with us at the Joyce Center when those nine games come…We play Vandy, we play Ohio State, we play TCU. Like come and join us. Believe in what we're doing and…that place will get rocking if you do it the right way, man…We want to help it get there. We need some believers on the court in our locker room. We need some believers in those stands with us, too.”
Projected Starting Five
When asked on October 14th, Coach Shrewsberry offered the following rotation, the same one I offered in an article on June 1st:
PG: Braeden Smith
SG: Braeden Shrewsberry
WG: Ethan Roberts
PF: Brady Koehler
C: Logan Duncomb
First off the bench: PG Jonathan Sanderson, C Tommy Ahneman
Micah Update
With a 41-56 overall record through his first three seasons in South Bend, there is no doubt Coach Shrewsberry’s name will be one to monitor all year as a likely hot-seat candidate. While I certainly don’t think Micah is the second-coming of Coach K, he does not exactly receive the help warranted to compete in the ACC from his bosses.
In an article posted by CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander and Isaac Trotter on October 21st, the two broke down every major conference program’s roster values for this upcoming season into seven tiers. Embarrassingly, Notre Dame is listed in the lowest tier, the $5-7 million range. They share tier seven with the likes of Boston College, Georgia Tech, Washington, and Colorado. Notable teams listed in tiers above the Irish include Northwestern, DePaul, and Butler.
Expectations/Goals
For those outside of the Notre Dame circle, most expect the Irish to miss the ACC Tournament once again in 2026. The reasons are valid given Shrewsberry’s track record, the roster turnover, and the lack of money poured into the program.
The goal should be fairly simple this season: show improvement. This will be Shrewsberry’s oldest roster in his time at Notre Dame, featuring six fourth- or fifth-year seniors, all of whom will play vital roles this year. We will see if this plethora of experience proves helpful for the Irish, but they need to put a legitimate product on the court for fans to start trusting this team “built by believers.”
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