2026 QB Noah Grubbs Returning To Notre Dame For Important Visit
There is a reason Noah Grubbs made it a priority to get back to Notre Dame this spring.
The 2026 Florida quarterback was on campus last summer for camp, where he earned his scholarship offer from the Irish, and again last fall for the game against Ohio State.
Grubbs will be busy this spring with trips to Michigan, Ohio State, Miami, Florida, Alabama and North Carolina.
But it all starts this weekend with his first stop, which will be at Notre Dame.
“We're going to see the schools that are reaching out and that offered and are giving Noah very serious attention,” Grubbs father, Colonel (Retired) Ephraim Grubbs says.
Notre Dame has shown it is very serious about Grubbs.
Quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli has made multiple trips down to Lake Mary High School to check in on Grubbs and has spent a ton of time on the phone with the 6-foot-4, 200-pound 16-year-old.
“A lot of guys, it's just, ‘Hello, how are you doing? How was your week?’” Col. (Ret.) Grubbs says of college recruiters. “And it's sort of blasé. Coach G gets into it with him. ‘Hey, I want to talk about this.’
“I am blown away with how much time he spent with Noah just talking to him. He's gone through concepts, he's gone through discussions. He's put him through the ringer. He tests him, really and Noah's really enjoyed that. Coach G's tested Noah about football knowledge and concepts, reads, formations, positions.”
Guidugli is trying to gain an understanding of Grubbs’ knowledge and ability to retain concepts.
“He's going, ‘Does Noah have the goods?’” says Col. (Ret.) Grubbs. “And so far he has passed Notre Dame's tests. That's been really, really good because Notre Dame's not taking it lightly. “
Grubbs has also had the opportunity to speak with head coach Marcus Freeman on the phone and in person.
“That’s meant a lot to him as well,” his father says. “He's very personally-driven with coaches and how they get along. He knows how important that relationship is.
As important as relationships are to Grubbs - and will be when he’s choosing between schools - he also understands there is more to his decision.
“There is something to be said about picking the school over the people because we know people move,” Col. (Ret.) Grubbs says. “You can't tell a 15 or 16-year-old how they should feel. They're going to feel how they feel, right? So as a parent, you have to set some boundaries, expose them to things in a controlled environment and go, ‘OK, let's see how his head and brain starts to work.’
“He loves Coach G, he loves Coach Freeman right now. He's got to love the school and the area and say, ‘I want to be here.’ That's the next part.”
That’s why Grubbs will arrive in South Bend a day early this weekend to spend an entire day checking out the area on Friday before he meets with the coaches Saturday.
“He knows Notre Dame by national reputation, but nowhere near what you and I recognize Notre Dame as because he doesn't have that life experience,” Col. (Ret.) Grubbs says. “He just sees how special of a place it is, how wonderful the grounds were. We come from the land of Disney. When everybody asks us, ‘How was Notre Dame?’ We're like, ‘It's like Disney. It's that nice. The grounds are like Disney. Perfect.’ It's just amazing.”
The weather is certain to be a little different this weekend than it was last June and September, when Col. (Ret.) Grubbs described it as “gorgeous.”
“It’s a little colder,” he says. “It's probably a little different. You've got to become part of that community. This is where you're going to come back for your alumni visits. This is where you're going to spend your time. You could meet your wife here.
“There are just so many things that you and I understand, but you can't impose that on a 16-year-old.”
You just need to let him see it for himself and that’s what the goal is this weekend.
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