A Preview of the 2026 Aer Lingus College Football Classic

Football season is well and truly upon us. The NFL are in preseason, fantasy leagues are drafting and college football is gearing up for another memorable year. As is custom now, the NCAA Football season will start with a bang in the college football capital of Ireland: Dublin.

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What To Expect

Whether it’s your first time seeing the sport or you’re bringing your binoculars and notebook to do your own scouting, the Aer Lingus College Football Classic is an experience like no other. Get fully immersed in the college gameday experience as thousands of home fans will be descending on Dublin to take over the city. The lead up to the game will feature a host of activities to get you ready and raring for the main event.

Various areas and venues will be transformed into hubs for each team’s fans to congregate, enjoy the pep rallies, tailgating and take in the unique atmosphere of college football in Dublin.

A college football gameday is not just a showcase of American football, but also of each college’s marching band and cheerleading squad. They too make the trip over the Atlantic and will perform throughout the game to bring the atmosphere up to 11.

If you’re totally new to American football and want to know what all the fuss is about, we have an article to help you get your head around and your heart into the game.

Meet The Teams

Treating Irish American football fans this year are two programs with their fair share of history and recent success. TCU and UNC make the trip across the pond to delight fans in Ireland.

Texas Christian University (TCU)

In the purple corner, we have TCU. Hailing from Fort Worth, Texas and representing the Big 12 Conference, TCU are coming off a 9-4 record from the 2025 season. The college adopted the nickname ‘The Horned Frogs’ after Texas’ state reptile and are championed by their mascot, Superfrog.

A school with some of the best rivalry names around, they participate in one of the oldest college football rivalries in the country. Known around the US, their rivalry with Baylor University has become known as ‘The Revivalry’ or ‘The Bluebonnet Battle’ and has only reached new heights since the schools reunited when TCU joined the Big 12. Not content with just the one, TCU are also rivals of nearby Southern Methodist University (SMU) and the Horned Frogs and Mustangs face off annually in ‘The Battle for the Iron Skillet’.

TCU’s current roster lost some stars to the recent NFL Draft. The Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks selected Safety Bud Clark in the 2nd round to pair with Nick Emmanwori as they look to repeat their success, while Linebacker duo Kaleb Elarms-Orr and Namdi Obiazor have both been picked up by contenders as well, being selected in the 4th round by the Buffalo Bills and 6th round by the New England Patriots, respectively.

Alumni Profile: LaDanian Tomlinson

TCU have been graced by some stars in the past. Most notable of all their alumni is LaDanian Tomlinson. His No. 5 jersey has been retired (Jayden Daniels look away) after winning the Doak Wallker Award and Jim Brown Trophy for Best Running Back in college football in 2000, along with being named a finalist for the Heisman Trophy and named a unanimous All-American that same year. L.T. finished his career at TCU with 5,263 rushing yards which left him sixth all-time in NCAA D1 rushing yards at the time.

His career only took off upon being drafted 5th overall in the 2001 NFL draft by the San Diego Chargers. Tomlinson was named the 2006 MVP, along with the Offensive Player of the Year and Walter Payton Man of the Year, was named All-Pro six times, named to the Pro-Bowl five times, led the NFL in rushing yards twice and rushing touchdowns three times, and was named to the NFL 2000s All Decade Team. Oh, and he holds the single-season touchdown record.

Tomlinson was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014, had his No. 21 jersey retired by the Chargers and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2017.

Players to Watch

It’s only been four years since TCU made it all the way to the biggest game in college football, ultimately losing out to a frankly disgustingly good Georgia team in the National Championship. The Horned Frogs will be debuting a new Quarterback this season in Harvard transfer Jaden Craig, after last year’s starter Josh Hoover moved on to National Champions Indiana to replace Fernando Mendoza. New offensive coordinator Gordon Sammis will look to establish the run game to help Craig’s transition into the new system, leaning on Junior Running Back Jeremy Payne to carry the bulk of the load.

TCU boasted one of the best Safety duos in college football last year and, in spite of losing Bud Clark to the NFL Draft, Jamel Johnson seems primed to take a starring role in what should remain a standout secondary this year. Incoming transfer Cornerback Teon Parks will only bolster the unit, which should benefit from a relatively unchanged young defensive line taking a leap forward from last year and finding the consistency to help a new Quarterback and offensive system find its feet.

University of North Carolina (UNC)

In the blue corner we have UNC. Fighting out of Chapel Hill, North Carolina and representing the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), UNC’s 2025 season finished with a disappointing 4-8 in what was Bill Belichick’s first year coaching the program. Known as the Tar Heels, a nickname for all North Carolinians, their mascot is Rameses, a Dorset ram.

Recognisable in their distinctive pale blue uniforms, UNC has a storied history in a number of sports, having won 51 NCAA championships across eight sports, tying them for 7th in the nation. Out of all the athletes to don Tar Heel blue, none would be more recognisable than Air Jordan himself. MJ won an NCAA championship with UNC in 1984, where, as a freshman, he hit the game-winner with 15 seconds left on the clock and turning heads as a player who would later become an icon.

UNC’s current icon on campus comes not in the form of a player but rather a coach. Bill Belichick leads the Tar Heels out following 48 years of coaching in the NFL, 23 of those as the head coach of the New England Patriots, where he cemented his legacy as one of the greatest (and possibly grumpiest) head coaches of all time. During his time with the Patriots, Belichick won a record six Super Bowl titles, all alongside Quarterback Tom Brady, while also adding two more from his time as a defensive coordinator of the New York Giants, where he was graced with another legend of the game and UNC alum, Lawrence Taylor.

Alumni Profile: Lawrence Taylor

While possibly not as much of a household name as Michael Jordan, Lawrence Taylor was no less disruptive and impactful as a player. Often regarded as the greatest defensive player to ever play in the NFL, Taylor is the last of a short list of defensive players to be named MVP, having done so in 1986 as he played a key role in the New York Giants’ Super Bowl XXI victory. A second championship would follow for Taylor in 1990.

Nicknamed L.T. as well, and possibly more notably than LaDanian Tomlinson, Taylor was selected out of UNC with the 2nd overall pick in 1981. Taylor remains the only player to have won NFL Defensive Player of the Year in their rookie season. That dominance only continued as he was named an All-Pro ten times, along with ten Pro Bowls, three times Defensive Player of the Year awards, which ties for all time with Aaron Donald and J.J. Watt. L.T. has been named to the NFL 1980s All-Decade Team and the 75th and 100th Anniversary All-Time Teams.

Taylor was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1999 and the New York Giants Ring of Honor in 2010. Announced by the team as the greatest New York Giant ever, he has had both his collegiate No. 98 jersey and pro No. 58 jersey retired by his teams.

Players to Watch

UNC remained unscathed by the NFL Draft, retaining key players for a 2026 season that should be a bounce-back year for Bill Belichick and the Tar Heels. Like TCU, UNC come into the season with a new offensive coordinator in Bobby Petrino, who should be licking his lips at the opportunity to get third-year wide receiver Jordan Shipp involved as much as possible. A standout in the ACC as a sophomore, Shipp is poised to make a splash this year if he gets the Quarterback play to match.

A position of transition in 2026, UNC have three new Quarterbacks in the locker room, with Wisconsin transfer Billy Edwards Jr. being named the starter for the game in Dublin. He aims to join a list of recent UNC stars under centre, including Drake Maye, Sam Howell and Mitch Trubisky.

The star and anchor of the UNC defense is senior Defensive Lineman Melkart Abou Jaoude, who led the ACC in sacks last year with 10.5. His life will be made easier thanks to the addition of Linebacker Peyton Seelmann, who registered 120 tackles last year with Richmond and now makes the step up to the ACC after transferring to Chapel Hill.

Global Ireland Football Tournament

To really get you in the football mood, head on down to Energia Park in Donnybrook for the Global Ireland Football Tournament. Hosted on Friday 28 August, this game showcases two high school teams, one from Texas and one from North Carolina.

2026 marks the 7th installment of the Global Ireland Football Tournament and the G.I.F.T. event has welcomed 48 different school teams from 14 different states and four nations since its inception in 2012.

There will be games going on all day, including Flag Football games, the version newly added to the Olympics, which will feature teams from all around Ireland before welcoming the high school teams Grapevine Faith (TX) and Ambassador Christian (NC) onto the field to give Dublin its own taste of the Friday Night Lights.