The Notre Dame Fighting Irish women’s basketball team is headed for a fall trip to the Bahamas, where Niele Ivey’s group will be one of four women’s teams in the Battle 4 Atlantis. The event also includes eight men’s teams, turning the early-season showcase into a busy stretch of high-level college hoops in paradise.
The tournament’s release called it: "Celebrating 15 years of spectacular, high-stakes collegiate hoops in paradise! The Battle 4 Atlantis will once again bring elite college programs together for an unforgettable week of high-energy competition inside the iconic Imperial Arena," the event said in a recent release.
On the men’s side, the field runs from November 25 to November 27 and includes Marquette, Memphis, Mississippi State, Penn State, Texas A&M, Virginia, Wake Forest, and Xavier. The women’s bracket begins and ends one day earlier than the men’s, and Notre Dame will be joined by Davidson, Florida, and West Virginia.
In football recruiting, Notre Dame commit Zayden Gamble made it clear he never had eyes for anyone else once he locked in with the Irish. The 4-star defensive back said he shut down outside contact and believes Notre Dame’s pull goes well beyond what happens on the field.
"I didn't talk to anybody else besides Notre Dame because I knew I was going to Notre Dame," Gamble explained. "What Notre Dame has for you outside of football, the academics, the people, the connections, the programs.
I mean, that's far more than, it's priceless to be honest. So once I, I didn't really care about the number.
I just knew I wanted to be at Notre Dame."
He also tied his commitment to the growing Florida presence in the class and said the idea has real momentum.
" It came down to the recruits. Let's make FloridaDame, let's make it a pipeline.
It's not just a saying anymore. Like, I think we have five or six commits already.
Just in Florida, I mean, it goes. To show that once you say something, you're going to eventually proclaim it."
Notre Dame also unveiled its revamped Patrick Kramer Dining Room on Monday, a move aimed at giving student-athletes a stronger nutrition setup. The school described it as a premier nutrition center built around culinary excellence and nutrition science.
Elsewhere, Greg McElroy has been bullish on Notre Dame’s 2026 outlook. On a recent podcast, he said he believes the Fighting Irish will finish with the most regular-season wins of any team, ahead of Ohio State and Georgia.
The Irish are also still in the hunt for Roman Igwebuike, and landing him would give Notre Dame another recruiting win while handing Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti some humble pie.
And there was a dose of that same flavor already after 2028 quarterback Trey Tagliaferri decommitted from Notre Dame just six days after pledging to the Irish and then chose Oklahoma. Penn State fans took note with relief, since they had also been in the mix, though they had already landed their own quarterback a week earlier.
In Other News...
Phil Steeles Notre Dame Stadium Ranking Has Irish Fans Fuming
Phil Steeles latest attempt to quantify home-field advantage has Notre Dame fans shaking their heads, with the Irish landing at No. 21 in a ranking built on home win-loss records from 2021 through 2025. The placement leaves Notre Dame behind several Group of Five programs, a result that feels especially hard to swallow for a stadium and fan base that have long sold themselves as one of the sports true home environments.
The debate gets sharper when the list is stacked against familiar opponents, including NC State sitting one spot ahead of Notre Dame even though the Irish beat the Wolfpack in South Bend in 2023 and NC State was routed there last season. It is also a reminder that raw records do not always tell the full story, especially for a program that has been perfect in neutral-site games during that span and has built much of its recent profile in settings far removed from the campus stadium conversation. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Is Making A Serious Push For A Florida DL Prize
Notre Dame has made it clear it wants to stay in the mix for Zylen Little, a Florida defensive tackle in the 2028 class who already has the kind of profile that draws attention across the country. Defensive line coach Charlie Partridge has shown strong interest in Little, who has been on campus in South Bend and has also taken trips to places like Auburn and Indiana while sorting through a growing list of offers.
Littles recruitment is still in its early stages, but it is moving fast for a player with a productive high school rsum and plenty of room to keep climbing. The Irish are trying to sell him on what their defensive line room can become, while other programs are making their own case, and the next round of visits could go a long way toward shaping where this one heads next. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Has One Big Preston Fryzel Question Before Fall Camp
Preston Fryzel arrived at Notre Dame with the kind of skill set that usually gets coaches talking about upside right away. The 2026 tight end recruit brings speed, route-running polish and enough versatility as a pass catcher to fit into a modern offense, and he also took the early-enrollment path so he could start adjusting to the college game sooner rather than later. For now, the focus has been on adding weight and getting comfortable with the physical demands that come with playing tight end at this level.
The bigger question heading into fall camp is how quickly that progress can translate into real snaps. Notre Dame has more immediate options at the position, including five-star Ian Premer, so Fryzels path looks more developmental than urgent, with his first chances likely coming in limited spots while he keeps building his body and learning the offense. If that timeline holds, the more meaningful payoff may come later, when he has had a full year to settle in and start pushing for a larger role. [Read more 🡒]