Notre Dame added two more names to its preseason award buzz on Thursday, with senior middle linebacker Drayk Bowen and junior linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa both landing on the Butkus Award watch list.
The annual award goes to the nation’s top linebacker, and Notre Dame has plenty of history there. Since 2012, three Fighting Irish players have taken it home: Manti Te’o in 2012, Jaylon Smith in 2015 and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah in 2020.
Bowen enters 2025 as one of the anchors of the Irish defense. He was named a captain for the 2025 season and will be again for 2026, and he’s now heading into his third year as a starter.
Last season, the Indiana native led Notre Dame with 67 tackles while adding 3.5 sacks and four pass breakups. He was more productive down the stretch in the regular season, and Notre Dame will be counting on him to keep rolling after that finish.
The 6-2, 232-pound linebacker already has some Butkus connection of his own. He won the High School Butkus Award while at Andrean High School, and earlier this month he also made the Nagurski Trophy Watch List. Healthy again, Bowen is back in position to lead the Irish defense from the middle.
Viliamu-Asa gives Notre Dame another high-end option on the second level. The California native played in 11 games last season before a season-ending injury against Syracuse on Senior Day. Even with that setback, he put together a strong stat line: 48 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks and an interception.
At 6-3 and 230 pounds, Viliamu-Asa has been mentioned by several outlets as the top returning linebacker in the country. He can change games both as an off-ball linebacker and as a pass rusher, and now he’s back healthy and set to make his presence felt in 2026.
With Bowen and Viliamu-Asa on the watch list, Notre Dame once again has two linebackers in the conversation for one of the sport’s most respected defensive honors.
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