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Notre Dame Announces Jonaz Walton News on Wednesday
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- Notre Dame Announces Jonaz Walton News on Wednesday
Marcus Freeman and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are preparing to host Mario Cristobal and the No. 1-ranked Miami Hurricanes on Saturday. ESPN's College GameDay will be in South Bend to cover one of the biggest regular-season games of the 2026 college football season.
Notre Dame is coming off a 35-13 victory over its rival, the Navy Midshipmen, on Saturday. Quarterback CJ Carr completed 19 of 29 passes for 210 yards and two touchdowns, with wide receiver Jerome Bettis Jr. finishing with game highs of six receptions and 78 receiving yards to go along with a touchdown. Running back Nolan James Jr. finished with a team-high 107 rushing yards and a game-high two rushing touchdowns.
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Notre Dame Fighting Irish running back Jonaz Walton (20).Michael Caterina-Imagn Images
Fighting Irish freshman running back Jonaz Walton led the team with 12 carries for 51 yards and a touchdown. On the season, Walton has 69 carries for 477 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns. Recently, ahead of the matchup against Miami, Notre Dame took to social media to make an announcement about its 5-foot-9 running back following unfortunate news.
On Tuesday, the College Football Playoff Selection Committee rankings were released, and Notre Dame suffered the biggest drop-off between the AP Top 25 and the CFP rankings. While the Fighting Irish ranked No. 4 in the AP poll, they fell to No. 11 in the CFP rankings, the largest differential of any ranked team.
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On Wednesday, following the release of the initial CFP rankings, the Fighting Irish took to Instagram to make an announcement about Walton. Notre Dame announced that the Georgia native was named one of the 14 semifinalists for the 2026 Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award, presented annually to the top freshman in college football. The full list of nominees is below:
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Jesse Legree, WR — Oregon State Beavers
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Damon Ferguson Jr., RB — Pittsburgh Panthers
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Trent Mosley, WR — USC Trojans
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Luke Wafle, DL — USC Trojans
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Jay Timmons, CB — Ohio State Buckeyes
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Keelon Russel, QB — Alabama Crimson Tide
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Mason Lewis, DB — Vanderbilt Commodores
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Jonaz Walton, RB — Notre Dame Fighting Irish
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Cardae Mack, RB — Arizona State Sun Devils
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Somad Eaddy, DB — Wake Forest Demon Deacons
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Deuce Geralds, DT — LSU Tigers
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JJ Dunnigan, DB — Miami Hurricanes
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Legend Glasker, WR — BYU Cougars
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Kenny Darby, WR — Kentucky Wildcats
"The most outstanding freshman in college football," Notre Dame wrote in the Instagram caption. "👏 Jonaz Walton is a Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award semifinalist! #GoIrish☘️"
No. 11 Notre Dame will host No. 1 Miami at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET, with coverage on NBC.
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This story was originally published by Athlon on Nov 4, 2026, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add Athlon as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
