# List of Notre Dame Fighting Irish football captains

Since 1887, 246 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players have earned the distinction of team captainthrough the 2024 season.
Dr. Henry Luhn established the role of football captain in 1887, followed by the first two-year captain in Edward Prudhomme.
There are 27 players who have earned the distinction of captain twice: Edward Prudhomme (1888–89); Frank Keough (1893–94); Louis "Red" Salmon (1902–03); Leonard Bahan (1918–19); Pat Filley (1943–44); Bob Olson (1968–69); Willie Fry (1976–77); Bob Crable (1980–81); Phil Carter (1981–82); Ned Bolcar (1988–89); Ryan Leahy (1994–95); Ron Powlus (1996–97); Grant Irons (2000–01); Brady Quinn (2005–06); Travis Thomas (2006–07); Tom Zbikowski (2006–07); Maurice Crum Jr. (2007–08); Zack Martin (2012–13); Sheldon Day (2014–15); Nick Martin (2014–15); Mike McGlinchey (2016–17); Drue Tranquill (2017–18); Ian Book (2019–20); Robert Hainsey (2019–20); Avery Davis (2021–22); Jarrett Patterson (2021–22); JD Bertrand (2022–23).
Jack Mullen is the only Notre Dame player to be chosen as team captain three times, leading the Fighting Irish from 1897 through the 1899 season.
The first duo-captains were Gene "Red" Edwards and Tom Hearden during the 1926 season, and the first trio was chosen in 1973 with Dave Casper, Frank Pomarico, and Mike Townsend. The number of captains per season has increased steadily since the 1967 season, and the current record was eight in 2017. The last solo captain was Harrison Smith in 2011.
Four captains late became head coaches for the Fighting Irish football team. These men were Frank Hering (1896–98), Louis "Red" Salmon (1904), Knute Rockne (1918–30), and Hugh Devore (1945, 1963).
Many of the captains have also received other honors during their collegiate careers. The list includes at least seventy-seven players who were selected to All-America teams, twenty-five consensus All-Americans, and seven that were selected unanimously. Nineteen have been enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame. A collection of other awards, the Lombardi (5), Maxwell (4), UPI Lineman of the year (4), Outland (3), Unitas (2), SN Player of the Year, Jim Parker, Sammy Baugh, John Mackay, Bronko Nagurski, Lott, Butkus, Bednarick, Walter Camp, and Wuerffel have also been won at least once.
Nine captains have been finalists for the Heisman Trophy a combined eleven times, including Allen Pinkett in 1983 (16th), Walt Patulski in 1971 (9th), Ian Book in 2020 (9th), Allen Pinkett in 1985 (8th), Frank Dancewicz in 1945 (6th), Ross Browner in 1977 (5th), Vagas Ferguson in 1979 (5th), Tom Clements in 1974 (4th), Tony Rice in 1989 (4th), Brady Quinn in 2005 (4th) and 2006 (3rd), and Manti Te'o in 2012 (2nd). Leon Hart finished atop the rankings in 1949 and became the only captain to win the Heisman.
There were at least four captains who were chosen by their peers to represent the Fighting Irish in the next football season, but were unable to perform their duty for a variety of reasons. Bill Walsh was elected to the distinction in 1896 after leading the Irish as starting quarterback in the previous season, but turned it down to enter Georgetown Law School. George Gipp was originally elected to be captain of the football team in 1920, but Knute Rockne suspended him in March because of what he stated as missing too many classes, while other reports speculated that he had been caught at an off-limits nightclub. In March 1935, captain-elect Joe Sullivan died of pneumonia, and as a result no captain acting in any capacity represented the Irish on the field that season. Moreover, an award in his name was donated by the Notre Dame club of New York to the interhall football program to serve as their season's championship trophy. Bill Smith was intended to become captain of the 1936 team, but was forced to drop football after a doctor deemed him unfit to play, with John Lautar filling his place as an acting captain. Of the four, only Smith and Sullivan are given recognition on the official list of Notre Dame captains, although a footnote below each season explains their unique circumstances.
* Frank Shaugnessy, 1904 captain. He was also inducted into the Canadian football and baseball Halls of Fame.
* Dom Callicrate, 1907 captain.
* Knute Rockne, 1913 captain. He would become one of the most renowned coaches of all time, and still holds the highest win percentage of any major college football coach (.881).
* Eddie Anderson, 1921 captain.
* Frank Dancewicz, 1945 captain. He was the first overall pick in the 1946 NFL draft.
* Bill Fischer, 1948 captain. He equaled George Connor's college distinctions with the same number of consensus All-American honors (1947–1948) and national championships (1946–1947). He also won the Outland Trophy in 1948 and was also enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame
* "Jungle Jim" Martin, 1950 captain. He won three national championships at Notre Dame in 1946, 1947, and 1949, and then won four in the NFL (1950, 1952, 1953, 1957).
* Jerry Groom, 1950 captain.
* Jim Mutscheller, 1951 captain. He won one national championship at Notre Dame in 1949 and two in the NFL in 1958 and 1959. He was the first captain not to be enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame since Frank Dancewicz in 1945.
* Myron Pottios, 1960 captain.
* Nick Buoniconti, 1961 captain. He was the first captain to win a Super Bowl, winning the VII and VIII championships.
* Rocky Bleier (left), 1967 captain. He won a national championship with the Fighting Irish in 1966, and then won four Super Bowls (IX, X, XIII, XIV).
* Tom Clements, 1973 captain. He was the first captain to win an NCAA football, CFL, and NFL championship, doing the first two as a player and the last as a coach in 2010.
* Bob Golic, 1978 captain. After a successful college and pro career, Golic would pursue acting and would become a long-standing radio host over various stations, many of which complimented Notre Dame.
* Joe Montana, 1978 captain. The "Comeback Kid" has become one of the most successful pro quarterbacks of all time, winning four Super Bowls, three Super Bowl MVPs, and numerous selections for All-Pro and Pro Bowl teams.
* Mike Golic, 1984 captain. He was the younger brother of 1978 captain Bob Golic, and was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2015.
* Ricky Waters, captain. He is possibly best known for his, and teammate Tony Brooks, infamous suspensions by Lou Holtz for disciplinary reasons prior to the biggest game of the 1988 season against No. 2 USC. The Fighting Irish would crush the Trojans 27–10 before defeating No. 3 West Virginia to win the national championship.
* Chris Zorich, 1990 captain. He was the first captain to win AA, Consensus AA, and Unanimous AA honors, all in consecutive seasons.
* Aaron Taylor, 1993 captain. He founded the Joe Moore Award in 2015 to recognize the best offensive line unit in college football.
* Allen Rossum, 1997 captain. He has two All-American distinctions in his notable track and field career.
* Jarious Jackson, 1999 captain. He broke many yardage record while at Notre Dame (records which were all surpassed by Brady Quinn), and went on to win four Grey Cups in the CFL.
* David Givens, 2001 captain. He won two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans.
* Arnez Battle, 2002 captain.
* Sean Mahan, 2002 captain.
* Gerome Sapp, 2002 captain.
* Jim Molinaro, 2003 captain.
* Ryan Grant, 2004 captain. He won Super Bowl XLV with the Green Bay Packers
* Justin Tuck, 2005 captain. He won Super Bowls XLII and XLVI with the New York Giants
* Brady Quinn, 2005 captain. He was one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play for Notre Dame, and set 36 school records.
* Tom Zbikowski, 2006 captain. He was also a professional boxer and firefighter.
* John Carlson, 2007 captain.
* John Sullivan, 2007 captain.
* 2008 captain. He won Super Bowl 50 with the Denver Broncos.
* Jimmy Clausen, 2009 captain.
* Kyle McCarthy, 2009 captain.
* Harrison Smith, 2011 captain. He would play in five consecutive pro bowls from 2015 to 2019.
* Tyler Eifert, 2012 captain.
* Zack Martin, 2012 captain. He set the record for most starts as an offensive lineman at Notre Dame with 52 during his college career. His MVP honors in the 2013 Pinstripe Bowl were also the first to be received by an offensive lineman in a FBS bowl game at any school since Jay Huffman in 1959.
* Kapron Lewis-Moore, 2012 captain.
* Manti Te'o, 2012 captain. T'eo had an enormously successful season as a Senior, winning the Maxwell, Lott, Chuck Bednarik, Walter Camp, Bronko Nagurski, Butkus, and Lombardi Awards in 2012, along with unanimous All-American recognition.
* T. J. Jones, 2013 captain.
* Sheldon Day, 2013 captain.
* Nick Martin, 2014 captain. He is fellow captain Zack Martin's brother.
* Jaylon Smith, 2015 captain
* Mike McGlinchey, 2016 captain.
* Isaac Rochell, 2016 captain.
* Quenton Nelson, 2017 captain.
* Drue Tranquill, 2017 captain.
* Khalid Kareem, 2019 captain.
List of Captains of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team :
| Year | Name | Position | College Awards |
| 1887 | Henry Luhn | HB | |
| 1888 | Edward Prudhomme | FB | |
| 1889 | Edward Prudhomme (2) | FB | |
| 1892 | Pat Coady | QB | |
| 1893 | Frank Keough | HB | |
| 1894 | Frank Keough (2) | HB | |
| 1895 | Dan Casey | G | |
| 1896 | Frank Hering | QB | |
| 1897 | Jack Mullen | E | |
| 1898 | Jack Mullen (2) | E | |
| 1899 | Jack Mullen (3) | E | |
| 1900 | John Farley | FB | |
| 1901 | Al Fortin | E/T | |
| 1902 | Louis "Red" Salmon | FB | AA (1903), CFHOF (1971) |
| 1903 | Louis "Red" Salmon (2) | FB | AA (1903), CFHOF (1971) |
| 1904 | Frank Shaughnessy | E | |
| 1905 | Pat Beacom | G | |
| 1906 | Bob Bracken | QB | |
| 1907 | Dom Callicrate | HB | |
| 1908 | Harry Miller | HB/C | |
| 1909 | Cap Edwards | G/T | |
| 1910 | Ralph Dimmick | T | |
| 1911 | Luke Kelly | T | |
| 1912 | Gus Dorais | QB | Consensus AA (1913), CFHOF (1954) |
| 1913 | Knute Rockne | E | AA (1913), National Champions (1924, 1929, 1930 as coach), CFHOF (1951), |
| 1914 | Keith Jones | G/T | |
| 1915 | Freeman Fitzgerald | G | AA (1915) |
| 1916 | Stan Cofall | HB | AA (1916) |
| 1917 | Jim Phelan | QB | CFHOF (1973) |
| 1918 | Leonard Bahan | HB | |
| 1919 | Leonard Bahan (2) | QB | |
| 1920 | Frank Coughlin | T | |
| 1921 | Eddie Anderson | E | Consensus AA (1921), CFHOF (1971) |
| 1922 | Glen Carberry | E | |
| 1923 | Harvey Brown | G | |
| 1924 | Adam Walsh | C | AA (1924), national champion (1924) |
| 1925 | Clem Crowe | E | National champion (1924) |
| 1926 | Gene "Red" Edwards | QB | National champion (1924) |
| 1926 | Tom Hearden | HB | |
| 1927 | John "Clipper" Smith | G | Consensus AA (1927), CFHOF (1975) |
| 1928 | Fred Miller | T | AA (1928), CFHOF (1985) |
| 1929 | John Law | G | National champion (1929) |
| 1930 | Tom Conley | E | National champions (1929, 1930) |
| 1931 | Tommy Yarr | C | National champions (1929, 1930), Consensus AA (1931), CFHOF (1987) |
| 1932 | Paul Host | E | |
| 1933 | Hugh Devore | E | AA (1933) |
| 1933 | Tom Gorman | C | National champion (1930) |
| 1934 | Dom Vairo | DE | |
| 1935 | Joe Sullivan | E/T | |
| 1936 | Bill Smith | G | |
| 1936 | John Lautar | G | |
| 1937 | Joe Zwers | E | |
| 1938 | Jim McGoldrick | G | |
| 1939 | Johnny Kelly | E | |
| 1940 | Milt Piepul | FB | AA (1939–1940), |
| 1941 | Paul Lillis | T | |
| 1942 | George Murphy | E | |
| 1943 | Pat Filley | G/T | Consensus AA (1943), national champion (1943) |
| 1944 | Pat Filley (2) | G/T | Consensus AA (1943), national champion (1943) |
| 1945 | Frank Dancewicz | QB | National champion (1943), AA (1945), Heisman finalist (1945, 6th) |
| 1946 | Game-by-Game | | |
| 1947 | George Connor | LB/T | AA (1943), Outland Trophy (1946), consensus AA (1946–1947), national champion (1946–1947), CFHOF (1963) |
| 1948 | Bill Fischer | T/G/DT | national champions (1946–1947), Consensus AA (1947–1948), Outland Trophy (1948), CFHOF (1983) |
| 1949 | Leon Hart | E | National champions (1946, 1947, 1949), AA (1947), Consensus AA (1948–1949), Heisman Trophy (1949), Maxwell Award (1949), Sporting News Player of the Year (1949), CFHOF (1973) |
| 1949 | Jim Martin | T | National champions (1946, 1947, 1949), AA (1949), CFHOF (1995) |
| 1950 | Jerry Groom | C/LB | National champion (1949), Consensus AA (1950), CFHOF (1994) |
| 1951 | Jim Mutscheller | DE/TE | National champion (1949), AA (1951) |
| 1952 | Jack Alessandrini | G/LB | |
| 1953 | Don Penza | E | |
| 1954 | Paul Matz | E | |
| 1954 | Dan Shannon | E | |
| 1955 | Ray Lemek | G/T | |
| 1956 | Jim Morse | HB | |
| 1957 | Dick Prendergast | E | |
| 1957 | Ed Sullivan | C | |
| 1958 | Al Ecuyer | G | Consensus AA (1957) |
| 1958 | Chuck Puntillo | T | |
| 1959 | Ken Adamson | G | |
| 1960 | Myron Pottios | G | AA (1960) |
| 1961 | Nick Buoniconti | G/T | AA (1961) |
| 1961 | Norb Roy | G | |
| 1962 | Mike Lind | FB | |
| 1963 | Bob Lehmann | G | |
| 1964 | Jim Carroll | LB | AA (1964) |
| 1965 | Phil Sheridan | E | |
| 1966 | Jim Lynch | LB | National champion (1966), Maxwell Award (1966), unanimous AA (1966), CFHOF (1992) |
| 1967 | Rocky Bleier | HB | National champion (1966) |
| 1968 | George Kunz | T | National champion (1966), Consensus AA (1968) |
| 1968 | Bob Olson | LB | Cotton Bowl Defensive MVP (1970) |
| 1969 | Bob Olson (2) | LB | Cotton Bowl Defensive MVP (1970) |
| 1969 | Mike Oriard | C/G | |
| 1970 | Larry DiNardo | G | Consensus AA (1970) |
| 1970 | Tim Kelly | LB | |
| 1971 | Thom Gatewood | SE | Consensus AA (1970), CFHOF (2015) |
| 1971 | Walt Patulski | DE | Consensus AA (1971), Lombardi Award (1971), UPI Lineman of the Year (1971), Heisman finalist (1971, 6th) |
| 1972 | John Dampeer | T | |
| 1972 | Greg Marx | DE/T | Consensus AA (1972) |
| 1973 | Dave Casper | TE | Consensus AA (1973), national champion (1973), CFHOF (2012) |
| 1973 | Frank Pomarico | G | |
| 1973 | Mike Townsend | DB/FS | Consensus AA (1973), national champion (1973) |
| 1974 | Tom Clements | QB | National champion (1973), AA (1974), Heisman finalist (1974, 4th) |
| 1974 | Greg Collins | LB | National champion (1973), AA (1974) |
| 1975 | Ed Bauer | T | |
| 1975 | Jim Stock | LB | |
| 1976 | Mark McLane | HB | |
| 1976 | Willie Fry | DE | AA (1977), National champion (1977) |
| 1977 | Ross Browner | DE | National champions (1973, 1977), Outland Trophy (1976), Unanimous AA (1976–1977), UPI Lineman of the Year (1976–1977), Heisman finalist (1977, 5th), Lombardi Award (1977), CFHOF (1999) |
| 1977 | Terry Eurick | HB | |
| 1977 | Willie Fry (2) | DE | AA (1977), National champion (1977) |
| 1977 | Steve Orsini | RB | |
| 1978 | Bob Golic | DT/LB | AA (1927), National champion (1977), Unanimous AA (1978) |
| 1978 | Jerome Heavens | FB | National champion (1977) |
| 1978 | Joe Montana | QB | National champion (1977), Cotton Bowl MVP (1979) |
| 1979 | Vagas Ferguson | HB | National champion (1977), Cotton Bowl Offensive MVP (1978), Consensus AA (1979), Heisman finalist (1979, 5th) |
| 1979 | Tim Foley | T | National champion (1977), AA (1979) |
| 1979 | Dave Waymer | FS/CB | National champion (1977) |
| 1980 | Bob Crable | LB | Consensus AA (1980–1981), CFHOF (2017) |
| 1980 | Tom Gibbons | FS | |
| 1980 | John Scully | C | |
| 1981 | Phil Carter | TB | |
| 1981 | Bob Crable (2) | LB | Consensus AA (1980–1981), CFHOF (2017) |
| 1982 | Phil Carter (2) | TB | |
| 1982 | Dave Duerson | FS | AA (1981–1982), Team MVP (1982), Edward "Moose" Krause Distinguished Service Award (1990) |
| 1982 | Mark Zavagnin | LB | |
| 1983 | Blair Kiel | QB | |
| 1983 | Stacey Toran | CB/S | |
| 1984 | Mike Golic | LB/DT | |
| 1984 | Joe Johnson | WR/SS | |
| 1984 | Larry Williams | G | AA (1984) |
| 1985 | Tony Furjanic | LB | |
| 1985 | Mike Larkin | LB | |
| 1985 | Allen Pinkett | TB | AA (1983), Heisman finalist (1983, 16th), Heisman finalist (1985, 8th) |
| 1985 | Tim Scannell | G | |
| 1986 | Mike Kovaleski | LB | |
| 1987 | Chuck Lanza | C | AA (1987) |
| 1987 | Byron Spruell | T | |
| 1988 | Ned Bolcar | LB | AA (1987, 1989), National champion (1988) |
| 1988 | Mark Green | TB | National champion (1988) |
| 1988 | Andy Heck | T | AA (1988), National champion (1988) |
| 1989 | Ned Bolcar (2) | LB | AA (1987, 1989), National champion (1988) |
| 1989 | Anthony Johnson | FB | National champion (1988) |
| 1989 | Tony Rice | QB | National champion (1988), AA (1989), Heisman finalist (1989, 4th), Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (1989) |
| 1990 | Mike Heldt | C | |
| 1990 | Todd Lyght | CB | National champion (1988), Consensus AA (1989–1990) |
| 1990 | Ricky Watters | RB | National champion (1988) |
| 1990 | Chris Zorich | DT | AA (1988), National champion (1988), Consensus AA (1989), UPI Lineman of the Year (1989), Lombardi Award (1990), Unanimous AA (1990), Orange Bowl Defensive MVP (1991), CFHOF (2007) |
| 1991 | Rodney Culver | TB | National champion (1988) |
| 1992 | Demetrius Debose | LB | |
| 1992 | Rick Mirer | QB | Team MVP (1992) |
| 1993 | Jeff Buris | DB | Consensus AA (1993) |
| 1993 | Tim Ruddy | C | AA (1993) |
| 1993 | Aaron Taylor | G/T | Consensus AA (1992–1993), Jim Parker Award (1993), Lombardi Award (1993) |
| 1993 | Bryant Young | DT | AA (1993) |
| 1994 | Lee Becton | TB | |
| 1994 | Justin Goheen | LB | |
| 1994 | Brian Hamilton | DE | |
| 1994 | Ryan Leahy | OG | |
| 1995 | Paul Grasmanis | DL | |
| 1995 | Ryan Leahy (2) | OG | |
| 1995 | Derrick Mayes | WR/SE | |
| 1995 | Shawn Wooden | S/CB | |
| 1995 | Dusty Zeigler | C/OG | |
| 1996 | Lyron Cobbins | LB | AA (1996) |
| 1996 | Marc Edwards | FB | |
| 1996 | Ron Powlus | QB | |
| 1997 | Melvin Dansby | DE | |
| 1997 | Ron Powlus (2) | QB | |
| 1997 | Allen Rossum | CB | |
| 1998 | Bobbie Howard | LB | |
| 1998 | Kory Minor | LB | |
| 1998 | Mike Rosenthal | OT | AA (1998) |
| 1999 | Jarious Jackson | QB | |
| 2000 | Anthony Denman | LB | AA (2000), Team MVP (2000) |
| 2000 | Jabari Holloway | TE | |
| 2000 | Grant Irons | DE | |
| 2000 | Dan O'Leary | TE | |
| 2001 | Rocky Boiman | LB | |
| 2001 | David Givens | FL | |
| 2001 | Grant Irons (2) | DE | |
| 2001 | Anthony Weaver | DE | Team MVP (2001) |
| 2002 | Arnaz Battle | WR | |
| 2002 | Sean Mahan | OG | Team MVP (2002) |
| 2002 | Gerome Sapp | S | |
| 2002 | Shane Walton | S/CB | Unanimous AA (2002) |
| 2003 | Darrell Campbell | DT | |
| 2003 | Vontez Duff | CB | |
| 2003 | Omar Jenkins | WR | |
| 2003 | Jim Molinaro | OT | |
| 2004 | Mike Goolsby | OL | |
| 2004 | Ryan Grant | RB | |
| 2004 | Carlyle Holiday | WR | |
| 2004 | Justin Tuck | DE | |
| 2005 | Brandon Hoyte | LB | |
| 2005 | Brady Quinn | QB | Heisman finalist (2005, 4th), Sammy Baugh Trophy (2005), AA (2006), Heisman finalist (2006, 3rd), Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (2006), Maxwell Award (2006) |
| 2006 | Brady Quinn (2) | QB | Heisman finalist (2005, 4th), Sammy Baugh Trophy (2005), AA (2006), Heisman finalist (2006, 3rd), Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (2006), Maxwell Award (2006) |
| 2006 | Travis Thomas | HB | |
| 2006 | Tom Zbikowski | S | AA (2005-2006) |
| 2007 | John Carlson | TE | AA (2006) |
| 2007 | Maurice Crum Jr. | DL | Team Defensive MVP (2008) |
| 2007 | John Sullivan | C | |
| 2007 | Travis Thomas (2) | HB | |
| 2007 | Tom Zbikowski (2) | S | AA (2005-2006) |
| 2008 | David Bruton | S | |
| 2008 | Maurice Crum Jr. (2) | DL | Team Defensive MVP (2008) |
| 2008 | David Grimes | WR | |
| 2009 | Jimmy Clausen | QB | AA (2009) |
| 2009 | Kyle McCarthy | S | |
| 2009 | Eris Olsen | G | |
| 2009 | Scott Smith | LB | |
| 2010 | Game-by-Game | | |
| 2011 | Harrison Smith | S | |
| 2012 | Tyler Eifert | TE | AA (2012), John Mackey Award (2012) |
| 2012 | Kapron Lewis-Moore | DE | |
| 2012 | Zack Martin | G | AA (2012), Pinstripe Bowl MVP (2013) |
| 2012 | Manti Te'o | LB | AA (2010-2011), Bronko Nagurski Trophy (2012), Butkus Award (2012), Chuck Bednarik Award (2012), Heisman finalist (2012, 2nd), Lombardi Award (2012), Lott Trophy (2012), Maxwell Award (2012), Walter Camp Award (2012), Unanimous AA (2012) |
| 2013 | Bennett Jackson | S | |
| 2013 | T. J. Jones | WR | |
| 2013 | Zack Martin (2) | G | AA (2012), Pinstripe Bowl MVP (2013) |
| 2014 | Austin Collinsworth | S | |
| 2014 | Sheldon Day | DT | AA (2015) |
| 2014 | Nick Martin | OG | |
| 2014 | Cam McDaniel | RB | |
| 2015 | Sheldon Day (2) | DT | AA (2015) |
| 2015 | Matthias Farley | S | |
| 2015 | Nick Martin (2) | OG | |
| 2015 | Joe Schmidt | LB | |
| 2015 | Jaylon Smith | LB | AA (2014), Consensus AA (2015), Dick Butkus Award (2015) |
| 2016 | Torii Hunter Jr. | WR | |
| 2016 | Mike McGlinchey | OT | Consensus AA (2017) |
| 2016 | James Onwualu | LB | |
| 2016 | Isaac Rochell | DE | |
| 2017 | Josh Adams | RB | |
| 2017 | DeShone Kizer | QB | |
| 2017 | Greer Martini | LB | |
| 2017 | Mike McGlinchey (2) | OT | Consensus AA (2017) |
| 2017 | Nyles Morgan | LB | |
| 2017 | Quenton Nelson | OG | Unanimous AA (2017) |
| 2017 | Drue Tranquill | LB | Wuerffel Trophy (2018) |
| 2017 | Austin Webster | WR | |
| 2018 | Alex Bars | OL | |
| 2018 | Sam Mustipher | C | |
| 2018 | Tyler Newsome | P | |
| 2018 | Drue Tranquill (2) | LB | Wuerffel Trophy (2018) |
| 2019 | Ian Book | QB | All-ACC (2020), Heisman finalist (2020, 9th) |
| 2019 | Jalen Elliott | S | |
| 2019 | Chris Finke | WR | |
| 2019 | Alohi Gilman | S | |
| 2019 | Robert Hainsey | OL | |
| 2019 | Khalid Kareem | DE | |
| 2019 | Julian Okwara | DE | |
| 2020 | Ian Book (2) | QB | All-ACC (2020), Heisman finalist (2020, 9th) |
| 2020 | Shaun Crawford | S | |
| 2020 | Robert Hainsey (2) | OL | |
| 2020 | Daelin Hayes | LB | |
| 2020 | Adetokunbo Ogundeji | LB | |
| 2021 | Avery Davis | WR | |
| 2021 | Kyle Hamilton | S | All-ACC (2020), Consensus AA (2021) |
| 2021 | Kurt Hinish | NT | |
| 2021 | Jarrett Patterson | C | |
| 2021 | Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa | DE | All-ACC (2020) |
| 2021 | Drew White | LB | |
| 2021 | Kyren Williams | RB | ACC Rookie of the year (2020) |
| 2022 | Bo Bauer | LB | |
| 2022 | JD Bertrand | LB | |
| 2022 | Avery Davis (2) | WR | |
| 2022 | Isaiah Foskey | DE | Consensus AA (2022) |
| 2022 | Michael Mayer | TE | Consensus AA (2022) |
| 2022 | Jarrett Patterson (2) | C | |
| 2023 | Joe Alt | OL | AA (2022) |
| 2023 | JD Bertrand (2) | LB | |
| 2023 | Cam Hart | CB | |
| 2023 | Sam Hartman | QB | |
| 2024 | Jack Kiser | LB | |
| 2024 | Riley Leonard | QB | |
| 2024 | Rylie Mills | DL | |
| 2024 | Benjamin Morrison | CB | |
| 2024 | Xavier Watts | S | |

## Game captains

No permanent captains were selected during the 1946 and 2010 seasons. Head coaches Frank Leahy (1946) and Brian Kelly (2010) chose a new captain for each game in their respective seasons. Game captains were also selected during the 2002 season under Tyrone Willingham, but four permanent captains were eventually selected at the end of the season.