Notre Dame Football: Jersey Number Countdown - 26

If you follow me on Twitter, which a good number of you probably don’t, you know that for the last few weeks I’ve been posting photos of old and current ND players in our countdown to the first game. Today we are officially 26 days away from kickoff between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Temple Owls, and thus here are some 26s for you.

Travis Thomas - RB/LB - 2004-07

Thomas was a rare two-way player for the Irish, as he lined up at both running back and linebacker. He started his career off at running back, but moved to linebacker before the 2006 season before moving back to running back for the 2007 season.

In the backfield, Thomas a compliment to workhorse Darius Walker. He was used in mostly short yardage situations, but at times showed his explosiveness. He also executed perhaps the last successful fake punt Notre Dame had (at least the last one I can remember).

Jamoris Slaughter - DB - 2009-12

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

Besides being a very good player, Slaughter possessed possibly the best name in the history of Notre Dame football — especially for a defensive player. Slaughter, a hard hitting DB, was a three-year starter in the defensive backfield for the Irish, recording 98 tackles (61 solo tackles). He also had two career interceptions.

Slaughter’s Notre Dame career was cut short in his senior season as he suffered a season ending injury in the second half against Michigan State in 2012. He spent the rest of the season mentoring a young freshman by the name of Mathias Farley. The 2012 version of the Notre Dame defense was the best we have seen under Brian Kelly. You can’t help but wonder how much better they would have been with a veteran on the backend.

Despite his injury, Slaughter was drafted in the sixth round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He spent one season on the Cleveland Browns’ practice squad before retiring.

BONUS

I was traveling all day yesterday and was not able to get a 27s post for you, so here are a few 27s for you.

Bobbie Howard - LB - 1995-98

David Bruton - DB - 2005-2008

Julian Love - DB - 2016-Present

Mike Townsend - DB - 1971-73

That is it for our 27s and 26s. Who did we miss? Let us know in the comment section below!