NEW YORK (WNDU) – Notre Dame football made its media-day rounds in New York City on Thursday, with quarterback CJ Carr and the Irish using the platform to signal expectations for the 2026 season.
The visit carried an undercurrent of motivation. Notre Dame missed the College Football Playoff last year — a fact the program said has driven its offseason approach.
Carr addressed the team’s mindset during an appearance on The Rich Eisen Show, pointing to a phrase the program has adopted heading into the year.
“You know, this year, we have the phrase, ‘leave no doubt,’ and so we’re going to try and come into the building every day and be the best version of ourselves, our 2026 Notre Dame football team,” Carr said. “And we’re going to use some of the pain that we had from last season and being left out and losing two rough games at the beginning of the year, tough ones to lose. But, you know, we’re going to use all those lessons that we have learned to propel us forward this next upcoming year.”
Carr added the team is currently in summer workouts with a focus on incremental improvement.
“We’ve been working. We’re in summer ball right now, just trying to get, you know, 1% better every day,” he said.
The Irish enter the season pointing to talent and depth as reasons for confidence in a playoff run.
Notre Dame opens the season on Sunday, Sept. 6, against Wisconsin at Lambeau Field in Green Bay.
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