There are plenty of reasons to be excited about the Notre Dame football team in 2026. Chief among them is quarterback CJ Carr. More than a few analysts have talked about the gunslinger as the x-factor for how much success the Fighting Irish can have. Some analysts are so confident in Carr's ability that they've even called him the top returning quarterback in the country.
Cover3 Podcast host Tom Fornelli was among the first to name Carr as the top returning quarterback in college football. Late last week, ESPN did the same, though the site hedged its bets and said the Irish QB is the best Power 4 returning quarterback.
Fornelli put the Notre Dame signal caller first, with Carr leading Oregon's Dante Moore, Texas' Arch Manning, Ohio State's Julian Sayin, Miami's Darian Mensah, Texas Tech's Brendan Sorsby, Ole Miss' Trinidad Chambliss, USC's Jayden Maiava, Indiana's Josh Hoover, and Georgia's Gunner Stockton.
No way I live to regret this list. Not happening. pic.twitter.com/0rkA2XCzDw
— Tom Fornelli (@TomFornelli) February 25, 2026
CJ Carr's top returning QB recognition makes Notre Dame football's 2026 ceiling even higher
ESPN had a very similar list with Carr on top. He was followed by Sayin, Trinidad Chambliss, Arch Manning, Jayden Maiava, Dante Moore, Oregon Ducks, Oklahoma State's Drew Mestemaker, Stockton, Sorsby, and Auburn's Byrum Brown.
The Notre Dame quarterback has even had teammates heap praise on him. Tight end Eli Raridon, who is hoping to move on to the NFL in this spring's draft, was glowing, calling Carr the "most elite" quarterback he's ever played with.
In fact, more than a few Notre Dame teammates made it clear they thought Carr was uber-talented. So many talked up the Irish quarterback that the NFL Combine became the CJ Carr show.