Back when Brauntae Johnson suffered an injury in the first half of Notre Dame’s game against Wisconsin, it was believed the superstar safety would be back by now. However, comments from head coach Marcus Freeman on Thursday suggest the Fighting Irish believe Johnson’s return is finally close.
That’s not to say that Freeman hinted that Johnson would be back in time for Saturday’s game against Boston College. There’s still no official timetable for his return. What Freeman did say during a Zoom meeting with local media is that Irish coaches are planning how they’ll work Johnson back into the lineup, considering that his replacement, Luke Talich, and true freshman Joey O’Brien have played very well in the weeks of his absence.
"You’ll figure it out when he gets back. You always make decisions that are best for your team. If that means finding a way to get all three safeties on the field when Tae is healthy, we’ll do that.”
The possibility of Notre Dame going with a setup where Johnson, Talich, and O’Brien are all on the field should excite Notre Dame fans. Meanwhile, the other starting safety, Adon Shuler, has had a rough 2026 season.
Marcus Freeman says Notre Dame football could use Brauntae Johnson, Luke Talich and Joey O’Brien together
Early in the campaign, Shuler was playing like one of the best safeties in the country, but he’s struggled lately. He did play very well against Miami in the biggest game of the year.
Getting all three of Johnson, Talich, and O’Brien on the field is also more attractive considering how banged up Notre Dame’s cornerbacks are this year. The Irish are without DJ McKinney, and Leonard Moore has missed time with various injuries. When Moore had to sit out a substantial amount of the Miami game last Saturday with an injury, the Hurricanes rallied from a 21-7 deficit to make it a game.
Miami picked on Moore’s replacements over and over, and it worked almost every time. Moving Talich or O’Brien to nickel back and making Christian Gray the “next man up” at corner could improve the secondary quite a bit, especially with either Shuler and Johnson or Johnson and O’Brien at safety.
For now, all of the potential lineups and depth charts are just dreams until Brauntae Johnson is finally back on the field. With just three games left in the regular season, the most realistic return would be for the College Football Playoff, or perhaps the week before. If Johnson plays another down this season, he'll be a huge weapon for Notre Dame as the Irish chase their first national title since 1988.
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