Skip to main content
notre-dame logo

Two Notre Dame football players inch closer to unanimous All-American status

IMG_9992by:Tyler Horka•12/13/23•

tbhorka

NCAA Football: Notre Dame at Stanford
Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt. (Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports)

Notre Dame junior left tackle Joe Alt and senior safety Xavier Watts are one step away from earning one of the highest honors in college football: unanimous All-American status. The Sporting News named them first-team All-Americans on Wednesday.

So far, Alt and Watts have been selected to the First Team by the Walter Camp Football Foundation, the Associated Press, the Football Writers Association of America and now The Sporting News. If they are named to the American Football Coaches Association’s First Team, then they will be the 36th and 37th unanimous All-Americans in Notre Dame football history. Only Alabama (41) and Ohio State (37) had more unanimous All-Americans entering the 2023 season.

Graduate student defensive tackle Howard Cross III and junior running back Audric Estimé were named second-team All-Americans by The Sporting News. Cross has made the Second Team on all four accredited outlets that have released their teams so far. Estimé is a two-time second-team selection as of now, also appearing on the Associated Press’ Second Team.

Cross and Watts have both stated their intentions to play for No. 16 Notre Dame (9-3) in the upcoming Tony The Tiger Sun Bowl vs. No. 19 Oregon State (8-4). Alt declared for the 2024 NFL Draft on Wednesday. He will not play in the Sun Bowl. It’s probable Estimé makes the same decision as Alt.

Here are The Sporting News’ first- and second-team All-Americans.

First Team Offense

  • QB: Jayden Daniels, LSU
  • RB: Ollie Gordon II, Oklahoma State
  • RB: Cody Schrader, Missouri
  • WR: Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State
  • WR: Rome Odunze, Washington
  • WR: Malik Nabers, LSU
  • TE: Brock Bowers, Georgia
  • T: Olu Fashanu, Penn State; Joe Alt, Notre Dame
  • G: Cooper Beebe, Kansas State; Zak Zinter, Michigan
  • C: Jackson Powers-Johnson, Oregon

First Team Defense/Special Teams

  • DL: T’Vondre Sweat, Texas; Jer’Zhan Newton, Illinois; Jonah Ellis, Utah
  • DE: Dallas Turner, Alabama; Laiatu Latu, UCLA
  • LB: Payton Wilson, NC State; Jason Henderson, Old Dominion
  • CB: Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama; Cooper DeJean, Iowa
  • S: Xavier Watts, Notre Dame; Tyler Nubin, Minnesota
  • DB: Mike Sainristil, Michigan
  • Athlete: Travis Hunter, Colorado
  • K: Graham Nicholson, Miami (Ohio)
  • P: Troy Taylor, Iowa
  • PR: Zachariah Branch, USC
  • KR: Barion Brown, Kentucky

Second Team Offense

  • QB: Michael Penix Jr., Washington 
  • RB: Audric Estime, Notre Dame
  • RB: Omarion Hampton, North Carolina 
  • WR: Troy Franklin, Oregon 
  • WR: Luther Burden III, Missouri 
  • WR: Tetairoa McMillan, Arizona 
  • TE: Dallin Holker, Colorado State
  • OL: Sedrick Van Pran, Georgia 
  • OL: Christian Haynes, UConn 
  • OL: Zach Frazier, West Virginia 
  • OL: Taliese Fuaga, Oregon State
  • OL: JC Latham, Alabama

Second Team Defense/Special Teams

  • DL: Byron Murphy II, Texas
  • DL: Mason Graham, Michigan 
  • DL: Howard Cross III, Notre Dame 
  • EDGE: Edgerrin Cooper, Texas A&M 
  • EDGE: Jalen Green, James Madison 
  • LB: Jeremiah Trotter Jr., Clemson 
  • LB: Jay Higgins, Iowa 
  • CB: Beanie Bishop Jr., West Virginia 
  • CB: Quinyon Mitchell, Toledo 
  • S: Caleb Downs, Alabama 
  • S: Malaki Starks, Georgia 
  • DB: Terrion Arnold, Alabama 
  • ATH: Sione Vaki, Utah 
  • K: Will Reichard, Alabama 
  • P: Alex Mastromanno, Florida State
  • PR: Xavier Worthy, Texas 
  • KR: Bhayshul Tuten, Virginia Tech

You may also like