Notre Dame’s 'next man up' defense is running out of healthy men before Miami...

Notre Dame has taken a "next man up" approach this season, and for the most part, it has worked very well. When starting safety Brauntae went down with an injury in the same game as Onye, Luke Talich stepped up and has played very well. When Talich was injured, true freshman Joey O'Brien got his first career start and shone as well.

Leonard Moore has missed some time with a concussion and DJ McKinney played so well in his place that he's even had some NFL Draft analysts move him into the first round in their mock drafts. But the injuries are piling up across every position group, and the Irish are especially banged up heading into the Miami showdown.

In addition to Onye, defensive tackle Francis Brewu also left the game after just a handful of snaps, and like Onye, his status for Saturday is very much in the air. Bowen's injury also leaves the linebacker position thin, since Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa missed the game with a nagging thumb injury.

KVA might have sat out the game against the Midshipmen as a precaution to be better for Miami. Or that thumb injury, which has also kept him out of several games this season, could limit his playing time against the Hurricanes.

That Onye has missed so much time has already been pretty frustrating, considering 2025 was a breakout season, and some draft analysts believe he could work himself into an early-round pick if he had a similar campaign in 2026. Last year, Onye recorded 26 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and a pass defended while being a handful for whatever offensive linemen had to face off against him.

In the secondary, Johnson is still out and Talich is still wearing a cast on his hand. Moore missed the Navy game, but he's likely back for Miami, as Freeman said he would have been available Saturday in an emergency. McKinney suffered his own injury against BYU and will miss significant time, including the Hurricanes game.

Notre Dame prides itself on the "next man up," but the defense is officially the walking wounded these days.

-Story by Oliver Vandervoort