Ever since Marcus Freeman was hired to take over as Head Coach, many fans have wondered if Freeman is the right man for the job. Will he be able to get this team over the hump? Would his inexperience as a head coach be a stumbling block to success at ND? There were growing pains in Freeman’s first two years. Allowing a major win to slip through your fingers against Ohio State, putting only 10 men on the field defensively, and losing at home to Marshall were all huge bumps in the road that left ND fans wondering. Is Marcus Freeman “The Guy” to lead Notre Dame back to its former glory?
Photo by The Irish Tribune
After last season’s woes, many questions needed answering, and problems needed to be solved. Freeman never really got to handpick his own staff as Tommy Rees was forced on him when he was hired as the offensive coordinator before Freeman was even named head coach. After Rees left for Alabama it looked like Freeman was gonna get his guy in Andy Ludwig when he appeared on campus with Freeman where the two were seen hanging out smiling and laughing at a Notre Dame hockey game. For whatever reason the deal fell through and Notre Dame was left scrambling to fill the most important spot on offense.
Time was running out and Notre Dame had to act fast and they did that by promoting TE’s coach Gerad Parker to Offensive Coordinator. It was very apparent early on that Parker wasn’t the right guy and appeared to be more of a last-resort hire. Add on top of that a toxic environment with Stuckey and the WR room, it was a wonder the offense did as well as they did. Later Stuckey was let go and it was announced that Parker was taking a head coaching job at Troy.
Once again Freeman was left with a major hole in his staff. All this turned out to be a blessing in disguise when Freeman got the backing from the powers that be at Notre Dame to finally go get “his guy”. Freeman had one man set in his sights, and that was
Mike Denbrock. Denbrock was very comfortable at LSU with Brian Kelly where he had just coached the number 1 offense in the country led by Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels. Notre Dame had major work ahead if they wanted to get Denbrock back to ND for his third stint. Discussions were had, offers were made, and Denbrock was now coming back home to Notre Dame. Fast forward to August 31st, 2024 when Notre Dame was set to take on Texas A&M at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas.
Once again the world doubted Notre Dame and even some fans began to question if Notre Dame could finally pull off a big win on a big stage with the world watching. Kyle Field is considered by many to be the toughest place to play in the country. With a capacity of 102,733 and a stadium that was renovated to create more noise that filters directly down to the field, it was always gonna be a tough ask to win in that type of hostile environment. Notre Dame came into the game with one of the top defenses in the country, so it was always expected that they would hold their own against the Aggies, and they did just that. They held QB Conner Weigman to only 100 yards passing with a dismal 3.3 yards per passing completion, 0 touchdowns, 2 interceptions, and a QBR of only 31.8 for the game.
The defense kept constant pressure on Weigman and although they only got home once (When Howard Cross III sacked Weigman in the 2nd quarter for an 11-yard loss) they forced him to throw sooner than he wanted to, which led to incompletions and two interceptions by Xavier Watts and Adon Shuler. They went on to hold the Aggies to just 13 points which proved to be more than enough to secure a win. The offensive side of the ball was always the question going into not only this game but also the season in general. When it was announced that starting left tackle Charles Jagusah was out for the season due to a torn pectoral muscle in fall camp, there was major concern for an already young and inexperienced group upfront that was responsible for protecting QB Riley Leonard.
Early on the fears seemed warranted as the Offensive Line was getting no push upfront and Riley Leonard was forced to get rid of the ball in what seemed like as soon as the ball touched his hands. Leonard was pressured the majority of the game and wasn’t able to go through his progressions or set his feet which led to many overthrown and underthrown passes. The Offensive Line was very undisciplined and committed multiple false starts which can be chalked up to both inexperience and the hostility of the crowd and the noise they were creating. Denbrock made adjustments and when he went to the run it proved successful when both Jadarian Price and Jeremiyah Love had long touchdown runs in the 3rd quarter.
Marcus Freeman Answers The Call
Marcus Freeman’s trust in his team never wavered and that was proven when he sent kicker Mitch Jeter out to attempt a 46-yard field goal late in the 4th quarter, only up by 7 points. Jeter went on to make the field goal and drove the final nail in Texas A&M’s hopes of coming back. Marcus Freeman displayed great confidence in not only his staff and his players but also in his system that he has set in place at Notre Dame. Make no mistake about it, this was a massive win for not only Marcus Freeman but the program as a whole. Freeman now has something that all great coaches have that leads to championships, and that’s elite coaches on both sides of the ball at the coordinator positions and trust in his players.
Those two things are a huge step forward to achieving the ultimate prize of a national championship. Freeman has proven after the victory last night that not only is he the right man for the job at Notre Dame but most importantly he proved that he belongs on the big stage of college football. The Offensive Line showed improvement as the game went on and they gained more confidence. With the benefit of an easier schedule than in years past they will continue to be able to grow at an easier pace which will set up for a run in the latter part of the season. With an elite coaching staff in place and a championship-caliber defense already established, if this Offensive Line continues to grow throughout the season, look out, because this team could make a lot of noise.
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Can someone please proof-read these things, especially the headlines. While Marcus Freeman surely gets a lot of exercise, the word you wanted to use here was “Exorcise”.