Notre Dame faces Wisconsin in Lambeau opener

01 · The NewsA Playoff Test at Lambeau

No. 4 Notre Dame opens its 2026 season against Wisconsin at Lambeau Field on Sunday, Sept. 6, in a Shamrock Series matchup that puts a top-five team’s playoff case against a program coming off a 4-8 season.

The game kicks off at 7:30 p.m. ET, and both teams will wear alternate uniforms. Lambeau may not feel like a neutral site, either. Wisconsin fans are expected to travel heavily, creating a potential home-field advantage for a Badgers team that went 2-7 in the Big Ten last season.

“It’s not a normal neutral site game. There are Badgers fans all over the state, and they haven’t forgotten about upsetting LSU at Lambeau even though it was 10 years ago,” Jordon Lawrenz said.

Wisconsin will have to test its offseason additions against Notre Dame immediately, without the tune-up game Fickell would have preferred. Lawrenz put the choice plainly: “Fickell said it best, Wisconsin would have loved a ‘tune up’ style game before this but it’s sink or swim time and we’ll see what happens.” Lawrenz picked Notre Dame to win 31-13.

The matchup also brings together Freeman and Fickell, whose coaching relationship spans more than 20 years.

For Wisconsin, Sept. 6 is sink-or-swim time. For Notre Dame, it is the first chance to defend a playoff projection before the season moves on.

02 · The StakesWhat’s at Stake

A Notre Dame loss would damage the Irish’s playoff case at once, while a Wisconsin upset could change the trajectory of Luke Fickell’s tenure. Notre Dame went 10-2 in 2025 and is ranked No. 4 in the AP preseason poll and No. 5 by the AFCA coaches. Josh Pate’s preseason bracket placed the Irish ninth in the playoff field, making the opener an early test of that call.

03 · The Watch ListWhat We're Watching