ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit has locked in his prediction for the 2026 college football national championship over a month after he already named his favorite to win the title during an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show.”
Herbstreit is backing Notre Dame to complete a postseason run that ends with the Fighting Irish on top. As On3 reported, the ESPN pundit doubled down on Notre Dame to defeat reigning national champion Indiana in the College Football Playoff title game in Las Vegas on Jan. 25.
In Herbstreit’s eyes, the Fighting Irish will get into the CFP as the No. 3 seed. Notre Dame would advance past No. 6 Texas in the quarterfinals, with Herbstreit describing that matchup as “a coin-flip for me.”
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From there, Herbstreit projects Marcus Freeman’s team to beat No. 2 Georgia in the semifinals and reach the national championship game against No. 1 Indiana.
The matchup would pit Notre Dame against the reigning champion Hoosiers, who Herbstreit projects to beat Oregon and Ohio State on their way back to the title game. Herbstreit’s final pick, however, has the Fighting Irish ending Indiana’s repeat bid and winning the 2026 national championship.
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Notre Dame enters the season with significant support from national media members. In an On3 compilation of 57 expert championship predictions, 16 picked the Fighting Irish, the highest total of any team listed.
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The Irish enter the season led by junior quarterback CJ Carr, while cornerback Leonard Moore is arguably considered the best in the country.
Notre Dame reached the national championship game two seasons ago before missing the CFP last year, and will get the new season going against Wisconsin on Sept. 6.
