Joel Klatt is circling Miami’s trip to Notre Dame as one of the defining games of the 2026 college football season, and it’s easy to see why.
The Fox Sports analyst included the Nov. 7 meeting in South Bend on his list of 10 games that will shape the year, putting the Hurricanes’ road test in the same conversation with heavyweight matchups like Ohio State at Texas, Georgia at Alabama and Michigan at Ohio State.
Klatt said the rematch carries extra edge because of what happened last season. Miami opened 2025 with a 27-24 win over Notre Dame at Hard Rock Stadium, then slipped past the Irish in the final College Football Playoff rankings before going on to the national championship game. That sequence, in Klatt’s view, gives this one some real bite when the Hurricanes show up in South Bend.
"I can't wait for this one. Notre Dame fans watched Miami get that last playoff spot, jumped them in the last rankings, they went all the way to the championship game, there is some saltiness in South Bend. There's no doubt about that."
Miami has not played at Notre Dame Stadium since a 30-27 loss in 2016. This will be the Hurricanes’ first trip to South Bend in 10 years and their first November game there since 1976.
The stakes are obvious in the preseason rankings Klatt is working from. He has Miami at No. 6 in his post-spring top 25 and Notre Dame at No. 2, with both teams expected to be in the CFP hunt again. That makes this matchup look like more than a marquee nonconference date - it’s a late-season checkpoint before the playoff field starts to come into focus.
The timing only adds to the weight. Miami reaches South Bend after what could be its toughest run of the schedule.
The Hurricanes play at Clemson on Oct. 3, host Florida State on Oct. 17, host Pittsburgh on Oct. 24 and travel to North Carolina on Oct. 31 before heading to Notre Dame. After that, Miami finishes the regular season with home games against Duke, Virginia Tech and Boston College.
There are questions on both sides, too. Miami’s biggest concern is in the trenches, where the departures of Francis Mauigoa, Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor leave major holes to monitor as Week 1 approaches.
Notre Dame, meanwhile, has plenty to like but also plenty to replace. The Irish bring back quarterback CJ Carr and veteran receivers Jordan Faison and Jaden Greathouse, but the ground game will look different after running backs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price went in the first round. Even so, Notre Dame’s path to that point is no picnic either, with games against Wisconsin at Lambeau Field, Michigan State, North Carolina, Stanford, BYU and Navy before Miami arrives.
Klatt’s full list of games that could shape 2026 includes Oklahoma at Michigan in Week 2, Ohio State at Texas in Week 2, LSU at Ole Miss in Week 3, USC at Penn State in Week 6, Texas vs. Oklahoma in Week 6, Georgia at Alabama in Week 6, Ohio State at Indiana in Week 7, Miami at Notre Dame in Week 10, Texas at Texas A&M in Week 13 and Michigan at Ohio State in Week 13.
In Other News...
Miami Just Lost A Chaminade-Madonna Playmaker To A Bitter Rival
A familiar South Florida recruiting name came off the board with a choice that will sting plenty of people around Coral Gables. Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna wide receiver Armani Strong, a four-star prospect in the 2028 class, is headed to Florida after drawing serious attention from Miami, USC, Notre Dame and Michigan, giving the Gators an early win in a battle that had plenty of local significance for the Hurricanes.
For Miami, the miss is especially notable because Strong has long been part of the South Florida talent stream the program works so hard to keep home. He enters the cycle as one of the more highly regarded receivers in the country and in Florida, while Floridas new staff under Jon Sumrall gets its first commitment of the 2028 class. Even this early, the recruiting board is already starting to show which battles the Hurricanes can afford to lose and which ones they probably cannot. [Read more 🡒]
EA Sports Just Sent Miami Fans A Clear Message About This Roster
EA Sports latest College Football 27 ratings offer a pretty clear snapshot of where Miami sits in the national conversation heading into the games July 9 launch. The Hurricanes come in at 88 overall, tied with LSU and Ole Miss and trailing a group that includes Oregon, Ohio State, Indiana, Notre Dame and Texas, which is the kind of placement that suggests respect without quite reaching the sports top shelf.
The bigger takeaway for Miami fans is how much talent the roster carries beneath that team number. The Hurricanes have 15 players rated 85 or better, with the group split across both sides of the ball, a sign that this is not just a team built around a few headline names. Early access opens July 6 for eligible players, so plenty of fans will be getting their first close look at how the roster is stacked and where the game thinks Miamis strengths really lie. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Just Lost Ground In A Key 2027 Recruiting Battle
Miamis push for one of the countrys top 2027 tight ends hit a setback this week when Anthony Cartwright III came off the board after a recruiting process that had included a look at Coral Gables. The Detroit Country Day standout had taken official visits to Miami and Oregon in June, and his profile as a Rivals four-star prospect made him a priority name for a Hurricanes staff trying to build early momentum in the class.
Cartwrights decision matters for Miami because he had been one of the marquee targets on the board at his position, and the Hurricanes had spent June trying to make a strong impression on him. His final group also included Michigan, LSU and Michigan State, so the interest was broad and the competition was real, but Miami now has to turn the page and keep working a tight end board that was already starting to take shape. [Read more 🡒]