Marcus Freeman’s Notre Dame has already hit the headlines by signing 5 five-star recruits in its 2026 recruiting class. After ending the 2025 season with a 10-2 record, the Irish are positioning themselves for a serious national championship push in 2026, all while several players on the current roster continue to draw attention for their elite caliber.
Heisman Buzz Builds Around Notre Dame CB After Travis Hunter-Like Breakout
Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore put together an impressive profile during the 2025 season, earning honors such as Unanimous All-American, Consensus All-American, Jim Thorpe Award finalist, and Bronko Nagurski Trophy finalist.
NCAA.com college football analyst Stan Becton recently unveiled his way-too-early Heisman Trophy watch list for the 2026 season, and Moore was an expected inclusion.
“The lone non-edge defender is Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore,” Becton wrote. “Moore had five interceptions last year and has been arguably the best cornerback in the country since his freshman year. Now with two other starting-level corners on his side of the field, teams can’t avoid targeting Moore, which could allow him to have more game-changing plays to boost his Heisman candidacy.”
Former Colorado standout Travis Hunter is the most recent cornerback to capture the Heisman Trophy, winning in 2024 while contributing on both offense and defense. He joined Michigan’s Charles Woodson (1997) as just the second player primarily known for defense to claim the honor.
Being mentioned alongside Hunter highlights Moore’s potential. As a sophomore in 2025, Moore started 10 games for the Irish and paced the team with 5 interceptions, tying for seventh-most nationally.
In Notre Dame’s 28-7 win over Boise State on Oct. 4, Moore registered 6 solo tackles and forced a fumble, becoming the first Irish player since 2023 to log a multi-interception performance. He scored the first touchdown of his career on a pick-six during a 70-7 rout of Syracuse on Nov. 22.
Moore ended the regular season with another strong showing against Stanford on Nov. 29, tallying an interception, 3 pass breakups, and 5 tackles in a 49-20 win.
Notre Dame narrowly missed the College Football Playoff in 2025, finishing No. 11 in the final CFP rankings and being edged out by at-large selections Alabama (No. 9) and Miami (No. 10). With that, Moore closed the season with 31 total tackles (23 solo, eight assisted), seven pass breakups, and one forced fumble.
Moore also ranked third in total interceptions (5) and eighth in passes defended per game (1.2). Quarterbacks threw his way on just 12.06% of coverage snaps when he was on the field. He is the No. 3 cornerback in the PFSN College Football CB Impact Metric, which gives him an A grade with a 93.6 score, and sits behind LSU’s Mansoor Delane and San Diego State’s Chris Johnson in the ranking.
