Spring practice for the Notre Dame football team has brought plenty of excitement, but it's also offered a few pieces of info that can only be considered "downers." During a comprehensive press conference on Wednesday afternoon, the Irish talked about several players who are out or limited. Among them is linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, who the team hopes will be back by fall practice.
In addition to head coach Marcus Freeman, the Fighting Irish had athletic director of sports medicine, Rob Hunt, address the media, and it was Hunt who explained that the defender will miss the entirety of spring practice. At the moment, the team is shooting for him to be back at the start of fall's preparations for the season, but that is also still up in the air.
Notre Dame isn't putting hard deadlines on Kyngstonn Villiamu-Asa after his ACL surgery. ​​Hunt said when the linebacker hits recovery milestones post-surgery.Â
Notre Dame football's Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa misses spring practice with fall return still unclear after ACL surgery
The Irish would obviously love to be able to say that the linebacker will be back to start the 2026 season. However, the beauty of the Irish roster is that they do feel as though they've got plenty of talent to take over the job until Viliamu-Asa is back.
That he's not back for the spring is hardly a surprise. Earlier this winter, Freeman made it clear the program was aiming for a fall return rather than the spring. The issue with Wednesday's announcement is that it's taking longer than expected. Granted, considering fall practice is still about half a year away, the timeline could speed up.
"I expect [Viliamu-Asa] to be back some time in the fall, right. I don't know exactly where," Freeman said in January. "Every ACL is different. ... But he will be back in the fall, and we expect him for the start –– somewhere around the start of the season to be full go, right. And so, he's doing really, really well in his rehab and recovery process."
Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa was having a very solid 2025 season before he tore his ACL in Notre Dame's game against Syracuse. Before that injury, he had racked up 48 tackles, 2 passes defended, 3 sacks, and an interception.
The linebacker being out for the spring and perhaps part of the fall will certainly test Freeman's "next man up" approach. On the other hand, Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa's missing spring practice will allow Notre Dame to see what other linebackers can step up and compete for playing time until he's back.