Notre Dame football transfer portal tracker: Where does 2026 class rank?

Lamar Jackson will reportedly miss 6-9 weeks

Story by

Story by
Notre Dame football transfer portal tracker: Where does 2026 class rank?

John Leuzzi, USA TODAY NETWORK · USA TODAY Sports

Fri, Jan 23, 2026 ·

5 min read

About Our Ads

Now that the college football schedule has officially reached the offseason, the focus for teams has shifted fully toward their rosters for next season and how they filled holes on their depth charts through the transfer portal or through the high school ranks.

One team that has been in "offseason" mode for some time now has been Notre Dame football, which controversially missed out on the College Football Playoff despite finishing the regular season on a 10-game winning streak and being included in five previous CFP rankings before Selection Sunday — and then decided to sit out the postseason.

Marcus Freeman and Co. were able to add some receivers for quarterback CJ Carr and bolster their defensive front with Oregon defensive tackle Tionee Gray and Alabama edge rusher Keon Keeley , who was once a member of Freeman's first full recruiting class.

∎ Transfers by conference: SEC | Big Ten | ACC | Big 12 | Notre Dame

REQUIRED READING: College football season grades report card for all 136 teams. Who got an A?

Unlike past years, January served as the only open window for players to enter the transfer portal this offseason, as the spring portal window in April is no longer part of the college football schedule. That said, players who entered before the Friday, Jan. 16 deadline — or by Saturday, Jan. 24 for those on Indiana and Miami's rosters— can commit at anytime.

Here's a running list of player movement for the Fighting Irish this offseason (players have either announced their intention to transfer decision or it's been reported that they will enter the portal):

Notre Dame football transfer portal news

As of 9 p.m. ET on Thursday, Jan. 22, the Fighting Irish have eight players in their transfer portal class. The top offense player in Notre Dame 's transfer portal class is former Ohio State wide receiver Quincy Porter , who was a four-star recruit and the No. 11 wide receiver in the portal. The top defensive player is former Oregon defensive lineman Tionee Gray, who was a four-star recruit and the No. 17 overall player in the portal.

Here's a breakdown of who has departed and who has joined the Fighting Irish program, according to 247Sports and the South Bend Tribune , part of the USA TODAY Network:

WR Quincy Porter (Ohio State)
WR Mylan Graham (Ohio State)
DL Tionne Gray (Oregon)
DL Francis Brewu (Pitt)
EDGE Keon Keeley (Alabama)
CB Jayden Sanders ( Michigan )
CB DJ McKinney ( Colorado )
K Spencer Porath (Purdue)

REQUIRED READING: Notre Dame football ends transfer portal drought with four pickups

OUT

QB Kenny Minchey ( Kentucky )
RB Gi'Bran Payne ( Cincinnati )
WR Scrap Richardson (Auburn)
WR KK Smith ( Michigan State )
EDGE Joshua Burnham (Indiana)
EDGE Preston Zinter ( Rice )
LB Anthony Sacca ( UCLA )
LB Bodie Kahoun ( Boston College )
CB Karson Hobbs (Florida State)
CB Cree Thomas (Colorado)
S JaDon Blair ( Missouri )
S Taebron Bennie-Powell ( Boise State )
S Ben Minich ( Maryland )
CB Chance Tucker

2026 Notre Dame roster: Transfer additions

Here's a breakdown of Notre Dame's transfer additions (as of 9 p.m. ET on Jan. 22) along with their 247Sports' rankings:

WR Quincy Porter
- Former School:Ohio State
- 247Sports Ranking:4-star recruit | No. 45 overall ranked player | No. 11 ranked wide receiver
WR Mylan Graham
- Former School:Ohio State
- 247Sports Ranking:Three-star recruit | No. 163 overall ranked player | No. 41 ranked wide receiver
DL Tionne Gray
- Former School:(Oregon)
- 247Sports Ranking:4-star recruit | No. 17 overall ranked player | No. 3 ranked defensive lineman
DL Francis Brewu
- Former School:Pitt
- 247Sports Ranking:4-star recruit | No. 53 overall ranked player | No. 8 ranked defensive lineman
EDGE Keon Keeley (Alabama)
- Former School:Alabama
- 247Sports Ranking:4-star recruit | No. 60 overall ranked player | No. 7 ranked edge rusher
CB Jayden Sanders
- Former School:Michigan
- 247Sports Ranking:4-star recruit | No. 108 overall ranked player | No. 5 ranked cornerback
DJ McKinney
- Former School:Colorado
- 247Sports Ranking:4-star recruit | No. 109 overall ranked player | No. 6 ranked cornerback

Note: 247Sports does not include Spencer Porath in Notre Dame's 2026 transfer class. He announced his transfer from Purdue to Notre Dame on Tuesday, Jan. 13.

Where does Notre Dame football's transfer class rank?

Notre Dame holds the 10th-best transfer portal class this cycle, according to 247Sports. It is the first time that the Fighting Irish have built a top-10 transfer class since 2021, which happened to be Freeman's first season at the helm of the program.

Here's a breakdown of where Notre Dame ranks among the top 2026 transfer classes in the country per 247Sports' rankings:

Note: Number of commits in parentheses as listed by 247Sports

LSU (39)
Ole Miss (27)
Texas (17)
Ohio State (16)
Penn State (36)
Oklahoma State (54)
Indiana (17)
Texas tech (21)
Kentucky (29)
Notre Dame (7)

Note: 247Sports does not include Spencer Porath in Notre Dame's 2026 transfer class.

Notre Dame football schedule 2026

Here's a look at Notre Dame's schedule in 2026, including available dates:

Sunday, Sept. 6:vs. Wisconsin (at Lambeau Field)
Saturday, Sept. 12:vs. Rice
Saturday, Sept. 16:vs. Michigan State
Saturday, Sept. 26:at Purdue
Saturday, Oct. 3:at North Carolina
Saturday, Oct. 17:at BYU
Saturday, Oct. 31:vs. Navy (at Gillette Stadium)
Saturday, Nov. 7:vs. Miami
Saturday, Nov. 21:vs. Boston College
vs. SMU *
at Syracuse *
vs. Stanford *

* Denotes games with an unannounced date

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast . Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more .

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Notre Dame football recruiting news, transfer portal: 2026 roster moves

Mobilize your Website

View Site in Mobile | Classic

Share by: