NOTRE DAME vs. NORTHWESTERN – Sunday, August 23 at 7:30 PM
Location: South Bend, IN | Alumni Stadium
LIVE STATS | NOTES | WATCH ON ACCNX
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish will take on Northwestern WIldcats in their home opener at Alumni Stadium at 7:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, Aug. 23.
| BY THE NUMBERS | |
|
32 |
Victories in home openers through 48 seasons of play. Notre Dame has compiled a record of 32-10-6 in program history. |
|
25 |
NCAA Championship appearances earned by Notre Dame since 1988. Notre Dame has appeared in 21 of the last 25 tournaments. |
|
14 |
Returning players that received playing time during the 2025 season. |
|
12 |
wins over the Northwestern Wildcats at home with the most recent home win over Northwestern taking place on Oct. 3, 2017 with a 2-1 overtime victory |
|
9 |
Seasons for McFarland Family Men’s Head Soccer Coach Chad Riley at the helm at Notre Dame, amassing a record of 80-5-26 during his tenure. He is the first coach to ever lead the Irish to two College Cups in program history. |
|
9 |
Freshmen added to the 2026 roster. The Irish welcome Eli Ackerman, Michael Capretto, Patrick Cuneo, Adrian Hrvojevic, Evan Lim, Maverick McCoy, Thaddeus Sawyer, Ethan Scala and Tristan Tropeano to the program. |
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7 |
Assists from Nolan Spicer last season, leading the team during the 2025 campaign. |
|
3 |
Captains on the 2025 team – senior midfielder Nolan Spicer, junior goalkeeper Blake Kelly, and senior midfielder Leo Brummell |
|
3 |
College Cup appearances in program history, including two in the last five seasons. |
|
3 |
Incoming transfers on this season’s squad as Noah Deitrich (Western Michigan), Lincoln Ulrich (Coastal Carolina) and Vlad Walent (Wake Forest) join the Fighting Irish for the 2026 season. |
|
1 |
Notre Dame’s incoming freshman class is the top-ranked class in the country according to TopDrawerSoccer.com. |
|
1 |
Notre Dame men’s soccer national championship, earned by way of a 2-1 win over Maryland in the final game of the 2013 NCAA College Cup in West Chester, Pennsylvania. |
|
1 |
Notre Dame’s incoming freshman class is the top-ranked class in the country according to TopDrawerSoccer.com. |
|
1 |
Notre Dame men’s soccer national championship, earned by way of a 2-1 win over Maryland in the final game of the 2013 NCAA College Cup in West Chester, Pennsylvania. |
THE NORTHWESTERN SERIES
• Notre Dame and Northwestern will face each other for the 26th time in series history and for the first time since October 2, 2018.
• The Irish are 15-5-5 against the Wildcats in the all-time series and are 10-1-2 when playing Northwestern in South Bend. The most recent home win over Northwestern took place on Oct. 3, 2017 with a 2-1 overtime victory.
• Notre Dame has won the last two home match ups against Northwestern and have also won the last two matches of the series.
• In the most recent match between the Irish and Wildcats, Notre Dame defeated Northwestern in Evanston, Ill. with an impressive 3-0 victory on the road on Oct. 2 2018.
SEASON OPENER
• The Notre Dame Fighting Irish (0-1-0) fell 3-1 in their season opener on the road against the No. 22 Indiana Hoosiers (1-0-0) on Thursday night.
• Senior goalkeeper Blake Kelly finished with five saves on the night. Fifth year defender Vlad Walent scored the first Irish goal of the season and his first goal in an Irish uniform.
2026 CAPTAINS
• McFarland Family Men’s Head Soccer Coach Chad Riley announced that senior midfielder Nolan Spicer, junior goalkeeper Blake Kelly, and senior midfielder Leo Brummell will serve as captains of the 2026 Notre Dame men’s soccer program this year.
• Spicer was a 2025 All-ACC Third Team honoree as the midfielder led the Irish in assists with seven (career high) and was tied for seventh in the ACC in total assists last season. He was also second on the team in points (11) off two goals and seven assists.
• Kelly started in all 20 matches for the Irish last season where he totaled 71 saves, allowing 25 goals for a .740 save percentage on the season. He finished the season with six clean sheets and recorded five or more saves in seven matches.
• Brummell is a senior midfielder, joining the Irish roster in the spring of 2025 as he now serves a captain in the 2026 season.
BALANCED ATTACK
• Ten returning Irish players registered at least one point in their Notre Dame career, as the team returns 54 points from last year.
• Nine players that scored a goal during the 2024 campaign are back on this year’s team.
• Junior Jack Flanagan is the top returning goal scorer on the 2025 squad after firing in a career-high four goals during his sophomore campaign.
THE CHAD RILEY ERA
• McFarland Family Head Men’s Soccer Coach Chad Riley is in his eighth season in charge of the Notre Dame men’s soccer program in 2025.
• Riley became the first head coach in program history to lead the Fighting Irish to two College Cup appearances, coming during the 2021 and 2023 seasons.
• Notre Dame has captured both an ACC regular season and tournament title under his direction, both firsts in program history.