Notre Dame’s linebacker room will be one of the deepest and most talented in the country in 2026.
The Fighting Irish rotated five linebackers a year ago, and all five are back, including junior Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, who suffered an ACL injury in November.
The only new piece to the room is linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary, who was hired following Max Bullough’s decision to return to Michigan State.
Jean-Mary is very familiar with the roster. Not only did he watch film of the Irish linebackers over the years, but he also recruited several of the players he’s now coaching.
“You would be a bad coach or a bad employee if you didn't do a little research on the job that you're getting ready to have,” stated Jean-Mary. “I knew probably 60-70 percent of the room because I recruited these guys coming out of high school. I had a little relationship with some of them and obviously some of their parents.”
Those prior relationships allowed Jean-Mary to hit the ground running when he arrived, but he still had to learn each player’s game.
During his time at Michigan, Jean-Mary also studied some of Notre Dame’s defensive tape while preparing for common opponents, giving him another starting point.
“You always want to admire other guys that play the position that you coach and it kind of challenges you to be a better coach,” explained Jean-Mary. “I was a little familiar with these guys and they've exceeded my expectations.
“I know there's a lot of high expectations for this group, but my expectations are always going to be the best that they can be individually and as a group. They're working toward it. It's a group that are a bunch of self-starters and we want to just keep them hungry, keep them healthy and try to finish the job.”
In the spring, Jean-Mary might not have fully understood what he was working with beyond what he saw on film. Drayk Bowen, Madden Faraimo, Viliamu-Asa and freshman Ja’kobe Clapper all missed either all or large portions of spring practice.
The last three weeks have provided a much clearer picture of what the room looks like when it’s at full strength.
“Tight-knit group and obviously very talented,” Jean-Mary said. “When we're at full strength, we have guys that complement each other well, guys that obviously played multiple positions here and have played for a long time. You feel the experience back in the room and the leadership now. It's a night-and-day difference from what it was in the spring.”
Jean-Mary was forced to move players around in the spring as Jaiden Ausberry and Jaylen Sneed learned the Mike position. Young players were thrown into the fire and that’s turned August into a competition for reps.
“It's still about competition and the biggest thing that we've said in that room is don't count the reps, make the reps count,” stated Jean-Mary. “You don't know when your number is going to be called, whether it’s injury, knock on wood, or for whatever reason, if he has to go in there, can't miss that opportunity.
“We try to prep them all to be ready to go once they get out there. Don't know when that opportunity is going to come, but we know in a long season, there's going to be a chance to go out there and play high-level football.”
The ability to build depth is never a bad thing, but having a two-time captain back in the middle of the defense is a luxury you can’t put a price on in college football.
That’s what Jean-Mary has in Bowen.
2026 will be Bowen’s third season as Notre Dame’s starting Mike linebacker, and he brings nearly 1,300 snaps of experience to the table.
“Drayk being a multi-year captain, his leadership is outstanding,” explained Jean-Mary. “One of the best I've had a chance to be around. Leadership is earned, it's not given. You can see the respect that everybody, offensively and defensively, has for him. You feel that.”
Notre Dame’s experience allows Jean-Mary to focus on the finer points of the position rather than teaching the defense or starting from ground zero with technique.
That includes reviewing last season’s games and finding ways to be sharper in one-score games.
“We really tried to just focus on the little things that we could have done better, especially one-score games that kind of went down to the last play,” said Jean-Mary. “We want to finish, but we're not as far off as maybe some other teams would be.”
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