Marcus Freeman greets his players at the opening practice of fall camp, August 6, 2026. (Photo: Joe Weiser)
Notre Dame opened fall camp Thursday, giving the media its first extended look at the 2026 Fighting Irish.
It was only one practice — without full pads or tackling — so this isn’t the time for sweeping conclusions. But Day 1 still gave us our first glimpse at a team with legitimate championship expectations and, as always, a few things caught my attention.
Here are five.
1. Jasper Scaife Put on a Punting Show
Let’s start with the punter.
Jasper Scaife wasn’t exactly a surprise Thursday. The 6-foot-6 Australian was with Notre Dame in the spring and entered fall camp as the favorite to win the punting job.
But knowing about him and watching him put on a show are two different things.
Scaife launched one towering punt after another, combining impressive distance with the kind of hang time that can make life miserable for a return team. Just as noticeable was the sound of the football coming off his foot.
Special teams coordinator Marty Biagi didn’t try to downplay what everyone had just watched.
“He had a really good day today,” Biagi said.
The next question will be how Scaife responds when the stakes get considerably higher. That’s another reason Biagi likes what he has seen from the former Australian Rules player.
“You can tell that he embraces big moments,” Biagi said, pointing to Scaife’s experience making important kicks in Australia.
Scaife is also Notre Dame’s No. 1 holder, a role Biagi believes comes naturally because of his experience handling the football.
And I had to ask Biagi about the obvious: Does being 6-foot-6 give Scaife an advantage as a punter?
Biagi, a former college punter himself, laughed.
“I wouldn’t think so,” he said, quickly pointing out, “I’m 5-11.”
For Biagi, height isn’t nearly as important as what a punter does with it.
“It still comes down to how you use the gifts that are given to you,” he said.
Then the 5-foot-11 former punter couldn’t resist.
“When Jasper was punting today, I was like, that looked like how mine used to be,” Biagi joked.
Maybe height doesn’t matter after all.
Whatever the reason, Scaife’s punts were plenty “tall” Thursday.
2. We’ve Been Waiting for Kedren Young
If you’ve been reading Fighting Irish Preview for a while, you know Kedren Young isn’t a new name around here.
FIP has been touting Young since he committed to Notre Dame as a four-star running back out of Lufkin, Texas, in 2023. That’s why seeing the 5-foot-11, 234-pound junior back on the practice field Thursday was particularly encouraging.
Young gave us a glimpse of what intrigued us as a freshman in 2024, carrying 21 times for 116 yards and a touchdown. Then came the torn ACL that wiped out his entire 2025 season and kept him out through the spring.
Thursday, he was finally back.
Young received more work than might have been expected on the first day of camp and once again looked like the kind of back we’ve believed could eventually carve out a significant role in the Notre Dame offense.
At 234 pounds, Young doesn’t need to be the next Jeremiyah Love or Jadarian Price. He brings something different to this backfield — size, power and the potential to become a physical downhill complement to Aneyas Williams and Nolan James Jr.
The next test will come when the pads go on. Running around on the first day of camp is one thing; taking contact on a reconstructed knee is another.
But after waiting nearly a year to see him back on a Notre Dame practice field, Thursday was a significant first step.
We’ve been high on Kedren Young for three years.
We’re not stopping now.
3. Keep an Eye on Matt Jeffrey
There are plenty of familiar names competing for playing time in Notre Dame’s receiver room.
Here’s one that probably isn’t getting enough attention: Matt Jeffrey.
Jeffrey made some of the most impressive catches of Thursday’s practice, including a terrific diving reception on a deep ball from Blake Hebert.
And if the athleticism caught your attention, consider what Jeffrey has been doing when he isn’t playing football.
He’s also an All-American midfielder for the Notre Dame lacrosse team.
Jeffrey started all 16 games for the Irish this past season, finishing with 19 goals and 12 assists. He was named to the All-ACC team and earned third-team USILA All-American honors. That came after being named ACC Freshman of the Year in 2025.
Oh, and before he ever arrived at Notre Dame, Jeffrey was the 2023 USA Today National High School Boys Lacrosse Player of the Year.
That’s a pretty serious second sport.
Jeffrey isn’t completely untested on the football field, either. He appeared in 12 games last season on offense and special teams and caught a 37-yard pass against Arkansas.
Now the question is whether he can turn all that athletic ability into a bigger role at receiver.
There appears to be an opportunity.
When offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock was asked Thursday about Jeffrey, Cam Williams and Jerome Bettis Jr., he made it clear that Notre Dame is still sorting through its receiver rotation.
“We’re going to be rotating a bunch of guys through both spots as we go through camp,” Denbrock said, as the Irish determine who emerges as their fifth, sixth and seventh receivers — and perhaps beyond that.
One good August practice doesn’t settle anything.
But Jeffrey’s Day 1 performance was another reminder that Notre Dame has a pretty intriguing two-sport athlete sitting a little below the radar in its receiver room.
Keep an eye on No. 33 this August.
4. KVA’s Recovery Is an Encouraging Development
Seeing Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa back on the practice field Thursday was encouraging in itself.
Remember, KVA tore his ACL in November.
Yet there he was Thursday, participating in 7-on-7 work and moving around without a brace on his surgically repaired knee during the opening stretch. He isn’t doing contact work yet, and Notre Dame has absolutely no reason to rush him.
But considering where he was nine months ago, simply seeing Viliamu-Asa this involved on the first day of fall camp was encouraging.
KVA has already demonstrated the instincts and football intelligence that made him one of Notre Dame’s most promising young defenders before the injury. The question has always been when his knee would allow him to get back to being that player.
Thursday didn’t answer that question.
It did, however, provide another positive sign.
Notre Dame can afford to be patient here. Getting Viliamu-Asa healthy for the long haul is far more important than winning some arbitrary race to get him back on the field.
But Day 1 certainly offered reason for optimism.
5. Notre Dame’s Secondary Looks the Part
If there’s one position group Notre Dame fans have heard plenty about this offseason, it’s the secondary.
Thursday did nothing to quiet the enthusiasm.
The first group featured Jayden Sanders and All-American Leonard Moore at corner, Christian Gray at nickel and Brauntae Johnson and Adon Shuler at safety. Then you look behind them and see players such as DJ McKinney, Dallas Golden, Mark Zackery, Luke Talich and freshman Joey O’Brien.
The length and athleticism throughout the group immediately stand out.
McKinney made an impressive diving pass breakup. Talich used his physicality to take a football away from Cam Williams. Sanders showed good coverage throughout the afternoon and also put himself in position for an interception he couldn’t quite finish.
And then there’s Moore, perhaps the best cornerback in college football, providing a rather difficult daily assignment for Notre Dame’s receivers.
What may be most impressive, though, is the depth.
“Just the depth that we have right now compared to last year,” defensive coordinator Chris Ash said. “We’ve got some older depth, more experienced depth, and a lot more competition than what we had a year ago.”
That depth is part of what has allowed Notre Dame to experiment with moving Gray from corner to nickel.
Ash said the priority right now is for Gray to “master nickel,” adding that his progress at the position since spring has been “tremendous.”
There are still things to figure out, particularly how all these pieces ultimately fit together.
But the raw material is certainly there.
This secondary has a chance to be very, very good, the best I’ve covered in my 30 years on the beat.
A Good First Day
Again, it was one practice. No pads. No tackling. And there will be plenty of August days when somebody who looked great the day before doesn’t.
That’s fall camp.
But Thursday gave us a few things worth watching as Notre Dame begins the march toward the season opener.
Kedren Young is back. KVA’s recovery appears to be moving in the right direction. Matt Jeffrey introduced himself to the conversation. The secondary looks every bit as talented as advertised.
And a 6-foot-6 Australian punter spent part of the afternoon launching footballs high into the South Bend sky, and almost to Mishawaka.
Not a bad way to start August.