Notre Dame head football coach Marcus Freeman held a press conference Monday at Notre Dame Stadium, previewing Saturday's 2023 home opener between his 13th-ranked Irish (1-0) and Tennessee State (3:30 p.m. EDT; NBC/Peacock). Here's everything he had to say. Answers are largely verbatim. Question are edited for brevity and clarity.
OPENING STATEMENT
“It was an unbelievable experience in Dublin, Ireland, to experience that game in that country with our fans — our fans were tremendous. I know it was [technically] a home game, and it felt that way too. It was an exciting environment. I really appreciate everybody [and] the hard work that went into producing that game. It was extremely exciting, and I'm glad I was a part of it.
“Yesterday we obviously had a chance to watch the film finally. When you have a 7-, 7½ -hour flight home, you can watch the film or watch the game, [and again] when we got back here. We're really pleased with the operation, the execution throughout the entirety of the game. That was the challenge. Obviously, many of you guys saw last year's game, and we played pretty well in the first half and did not play well in the second half. And the ability for those guys that continue to stay in the moment and just continue to focus on every minute, every play, doing your job.
“And then you had a little bit of adversity — not adversity — but you missed a field goal late. Defensively, we let them drive and kick a field goal. Those are great. I loved it, because it’s great teaching opportunities, and you look for those moments as you evaluate, especially after a big win like that. You look for opportunities to continue to teach and continue to make sure your players know the urgency you have to have to fix mistakes. And so, I remember watching the play with the offensive staff yesterday, saying ‘That's a play that we’ve got to make sure we correct with urgency.’ That’s what our entire program has to have — the same urgency, no matter what the result of the game is, to make sure that we are correcting and teaching and doing everything we need to do with urgency.
“The players of the game were: Offensively, Sam Hartman: Defensively, Marist Liufau; and then special teams Chris Tyree. I just thought about it, we haven't even told them yet. This is different than last year, because we've kind of changed our schedule. Yesterday was obviously the flight home. We weren't able to do a normal Sunday, but right now the plan for this season is to not do what we did last year. [Going forward], Sundays are going to be their off days, and Mondays we’ll meet and have our practice on Mondays, which is a similar schedule to what it was like before I became the head coach. So, it's not a huge change for them, but through the offseason, I kind of made a decision to go that route.
“Now we get the opportunity to come back home and play, obviously, in our stadium. I know for a lot of the new guys, it'll be a chance on Friday to participate in the Rockne Rally. We're excited to do that. And then Saturday, we play our first game in Notre Dame Stadium. And we don't take that opportunity for granted. We obviously know this is our first opportunity to play an FCS opponent and obviously an HBCU. I’m truly — and we’ll make sure they are — grateful for the opportunity to be able to do this. I know that they’re distinct, different universities, but they're both distinct in celebrating in their own way. But I think at the core, the core values that both universities possess, they align. And I think that's a great opportunity. And it's going to be a great experience for both schools.
“So lastly, obviously, the chance to be across the field from Eddie George. I'm looking forward to that. I grew up in Ohio and watching Eddie George play for Ohio State, and I've gotten to know him throughout the years. Really looking forward to this opportunity to go against him and his football team, that is talented. I mean, they're a good team.
“We spent quite a bit of yesterday, as a staff, watching some of the things they do. On both sides of the ball, they have some playmakers. I think the quarterback — I know they’re listing him as ‘or’ —No. 7, we've got some challenges, now. We better keep him in the pocket. And the running back is a good player, that you see his yards after contact are impressive. And their defense, I think they were No. 2 in their conference last year. Really good in the red zone. And the one thing I also noticed was that, when you watch their games, they don't turn the ball over and they take the ball away. And that's a sign of a well-coached team. So, we are truly looking forward to this opportunity versus a good opponent, and with that, I’ll open it up for questions.”
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Q: Do you remember the first time that you met or talked to Eddie George, and then how has your relationship grown throughout the years?
Marcus Freeman: “I think this is his third year [as a head coach], but the last time I saw him, other than when they came here for the press conference, I was actually in Nashville. I think I was meeting with the Titans to do just some professional development, and Eddie was there and I got a chance to see him. There are many games I’ve watched of Eddie George. He was a great player. I don't remember any distinct one, but to see him win the Heisman was a moment that I remember as a young person. We've met each other many times throughout my time at Ohio State, and so he's always been a first-class individual, great family man and someone you really look up to.”
Q: With Deion Colzie, what does it say about his strides, not only physically but mentally, the way that he didn't have the best camp that we saw at times, but he responded in a big way Saturday?
MF: “I know he wasn’t listed as a starter, but — I wrote it down — Deion Colzie had seven plays. He ended up having seven reps on offense. He played a lot on special teams, but take advantage of your opportunities, and that's what a great example [he was]. Seven plays, and he ends up with a touchdown and some other big plays. Even some of the special teams things he did. Nobody comes to Notre Dame to be a special-teamer. But you have to embrace that role, and we really talk to our players about the value of special teams players, as you look to the next level.
“There are very few individuals that play in the NFL that don't have special teams value. And for our guys to understand that — and [special teams] coach [Marty] Biagi has done a great job explaining that's what NFL guys are looking for — unless you're a quarterback or unless you're the first-round tackle, you have to be able to contribute on special teams. So, I think two things that reflect on Deion Colzie’s performance. You take advantage of your opportunities — seven reps. And he took advantage of every single opportunity he got. And the unselfishness and the execution he did on special teams, to me, I applaud him for it.”
Q: How do you get the team to peak again coming back from Ireland and a long flight, reset their clocks, all that stuff?
MF: “We could have put in a waiver to use yesterday as a practice day, but we decided not to, and we wanted to give them the day off. A lot of those guys did not sleep after the game. I think we got back to our hotel a little bit after 12:30 [local time]. And I think the first bus took off at 5:15 in the morning. The second bus was at 5:30, and the last bus was at 6. So, they probably thought they were going to be able to sleep on the plane, but you know sleeping on a plane is not an easy thing to do. So, we decided to give them yesterday off, encourage them not just to sleep all day, because we want to try to get their cycles back to where they need to be. ‘Try to stay up. Try to go on a walk and do some different things when you get back.’
“I know a lot of them got good sleep last night, but even me and our coaching staff, like you don't feel 100% probably until you get two nights. The same thing is when we went there and we were changing time zones, like it's going to take two nights to really get adjusted. So, we have to be smart in what we're going to do today. We're not going to do a whole bunch. We're going to meet. We're going to watch the game. We're going to put it to rest, and then we're going to start moving forward to Tennessee State and go out and have more of a jog-through instead of a practice on Monday.
“And as I looked at Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, the work is the work. The scout work is the work, but where I could tweak it is maybe an individual period of taking off, taking off a couple minutes of practice. Ultimately, everything we do is to make sure Saturday that they're ready to peak and perform at 330. So, that's kind of just the small changes we've made since they’ve come back.”
Q: You had several freshmen who played well on Saturday, but they’ve never experienced the atmosphere they're going to be in on Saturday. So, how do you prepare those guys to be ready to handle everything around them this week?
MF: “You got a little taste of it in Dublin, Ireland, because it truly was a home game for us. But they've never played in Notre Dame Stadium, so I want them to embrace it, embrace the moment, embrace being in this special place, but that has nothing to do with you doing your job. And that's the common theme that you'll hear me say is we have a chance to come back into the stadium with our great fans, with our students in what I believe will be just a packed, great stadium. But with all that being said, embrace it, enjoy it pregame. But once the foot hits the ball, you're focused on one thing, and that’s just win the interval. Just doing your job on that play, and nothing else matters. We often say 120-by-53 1/3. Same thing as in Dublin Ireland. That's really what matters. Enjoy it, because not every place in the country is like Notre Dame Stadium, but your focus has to be, once the game starts, just to win the interval, do those things that we talked about, that it takes to win, each play,”
Q: As you looked at the tape of Sam Hartman, are there any moments where you thought: This actually could be tuned up a little bit despite the great stat line?
MF: “Yeah, the one third down that we ended up kicking the field, we probably didn't make the read or put the ball in the placement exactly where he wanted to go. The play before that, he thought he was getting an all-out pressure, made a check, and it ended up not being all-out pressure. And there's different tells that maybe we could show him that, ‘Hey, make sure that you, hopefully, make the correct call there.’ But I'm being really picky. Ball security is something I'm always talking to him about, and he likes to scramble back around there with one hand on the ball, and we're trying to break that habit. So, I'm being picky. He played really extremely well, and he's a very focused and mature individual that will continuously work at everything, but there are always learning opportunities in every single game we play.”
Q: The change on the Sunday/Monday practice schedule, how much of that was player feedback? Is that recovery-based? What, ultimately, went into that?
MF: “Science, player feedback. Now, some of them liked the Sunday practice. Some didn't. So, I don't take too much into that. But ultimately I have to just make a decision about what I think is best for Saturday, and each place is different. And that's probably the biggest thing I've learned in the year of experience is you can't just take a plan and say it worked for me as a player or it worked at a previous place that I was at, and it's going to work at Notre Dame. You’ve got to take in consideration what they're being asked to do on a Monday here, compared to what it was like somewhere else. And so, that's kind of the biggest thing. I wanted them to truly have a day off on paper. You get one day off, but I wanted them to be able to take Sunday and really work academically, and you don't have anything mandatory from us on Sunday. Academics are so important, you have to have time to really work at that. And also the lifting part of what we're asking them to do, so a lot of things went into that decision. It's not just one thing. A lot of things went into that decision.
Q: Jaden Greathouse, when you were recruiting him, how significant do you think that high school offense he played in was to making him ready to do some of the things he's doing here?
MF: “I said this about both Jaden Greathouse and Rico Flores. They both come from really good high school programs, where they're almost coached in a way that is very similar to college. I remember leaving both places saying the transition for those guys from high school to college won't be as big as some other guys that didn't come from those types of programs. So, that's a huge part of it. Some of the high school football in Texas, those stadiums, they’re used to that. But I think it's the structure of what they're asked to do with those programs in terms of the concepts, in terms of practice schedules, all those things will have an impact as you transition out. “
Q: Whose idea was it to use Sam Hartman under center?
MF: “There’s different reasons why you put a quarterback under center and sometimes you keep him in the gun. But that’s something our offensive staff talks in depth about. Hey, this play would be best run under center. A lot of it has to do with if it’s a pass, what it can do to the defense from an under center position in terms of play action and things like that. And if it’s a run, a lot of it has to do with the angles of the running back and then the quarterback in terms of maybe not doing it out of gun. The offensive staff really takes time to make those decisions.”
Q: Was that something that Gerad Parker was adamant about wanting to incorporate?
MF: “Yeah. It’s important to him. It’s important to have success. That’s the biggest thing. Being under center in a certain situation will help us have success.”
Q: Was the adjustment from the slow mesh/RPOs to Notre Dame’s offense a big one for Hartman?
MF: “I think it was. Throughout the spring you saw that. His footwork. You saw at times in practice that he would revert back to maybe some of his previous footwork that he did at Wake Forest. That is something that took a lot of work to really change his footwork in terms of getting it to how coach [Gerad] Parker and coach [Gino] Guidugli wanted here.”
Q: What’s surprised you the most about the depth of the team on Saturday?
MF: “There wasn’t a drop off. That’s what you want to make sure you’re able to do. You can roll guys in there, keep them fresh and there’s not a drop off. That’s really a compliment to our coaches and the depth they’ve been able to create. I think about our D-line and the amount of people that played and what they did. I don’t know if you guys know, Gabe Rubio will be out for a couple weeks. It’s just a knee injury. He has to get a couple things fixed in his knee, but he will be out for a couple weeks. That was really the only injury we had from the game. That’s just going to give somebody else another opportunity to step up. I go back to training camp where we mandated we have to get some of the 2 and 3s, guys we’re counting on, reps against 1s, so that we know they’re able to do their job versus the best. Not 2s vs. 2s or 3s vs. 3s. I want see guys going against our best, so we know before we get into Dublin, Ireland, what they can do.”
Q: What does this win do for the feeling inside the locker room? How do you get the guys to not be overly confident?
MF: “I talked to the staff about this last night. We all have to be saying the same thing. We don’t need some type of false narrative, some type of ‘Don’t overlook any opponent.’ We don’t need that. Let’s talk about what really matters and that’s winning today. That’s going to take care of Saturday if we win this Monday. That’s what we all have to be saying in our meeting rooms, because — I’ve said this to you guys before — their voices are so much stronger than mine, because they’re with them so much longer. So our coaches have to be saying the same thing in that position room. Guys, don’t worry about Saturday. Don’t worry about exactly, ‘Hey, can we go 2-0? Can this start catapulting the season?’ Like why did we have success on Saturday? What do we have to do to have success today? And really focus on that.
"That’s going to be the motivation to me. Can we have a great Monday? Can we learn? We say we win and we learn. So we won the game. What can we learn in this hour or two meetings that we’re going to have as we look back at the last game? I feel like I’m having a team meeting right now. This first hour we’re going to look at the last game. Your job is to learn. We have to learn. It’s a challenge. You have to learn from last game. Good, bad, doesn’t matter. Learn from it. Now as we get ready for our opponent the second hour, study the heck out of it. Let’s learn the game plan. What are our thoughts? Then we have to go out there and have a great 45-minute to hour walkthrough or jog-through. That has to be our focus. It’s us versus Tennessee State today. That’s our mindset.
"They have meetings and practice today. We have meetings and practice today. Who’s going to have the better meetings and practice? If we can keep motivating them to just win these moments, Saturday will take care of itself. It will. As we get into next week, it will take care of itself. But don’t start looking ahead. Me too. Don’t start looking, ‘OK, Tennessee State, NC State. Oh, man. Here we go.’ No, it doesn’t matter. That stuff doesn’t matter, because if you lose today, guess what? The result of what you want on Saturday isn’t going to be what you really, really want. So you have to just focus on right now in the day and truly win today.”
Q: What did Marist Liufau do well to earn the defensive player of the week award? What did the rest of the linebackers do?
MF: “They all played well. All had winning performances. Marist played with a physicality that I have not seen for a while. Marist is a physical linebacker. He’s a really good player. But I went back and watched that film; Marist was playing so physical and constantly did it and did it. I played linebacker. There are certain plays, certain formations you can see and say, ‘OK, we’re going head-to-head. We gotta go.’ It’s not natural to really enjoy that over and over and over and over and over. But you have to do it. That’s what I saw. There were certain formations Marist knew with three backs in the backfield, ‘OK, here comes the lead on me. It’s me versus this dude.’ And the very first play of the game if you go back and watch it, the dude got him a lot. The Navy fullback. They got in the same formation four or five times, and Marist every play went and took him on. That’s what you love to see. A guy that’s willing to sacrifice his body but also do your job.
"You can’t just be a physical player and not do your job. Marist did them both. He had a forced fumble. You can see as you go back — I told coach [Al] Golden this last night — you can see defensive guys truly being aware of the football trying to get it out. We had zero turnovers. But that is not because there wasn’t awareness and a lack of effort to do it. So credit to them. The turnovers and takeaways will come as long as we’re constantly being aware of where the ball is.”
Q: How would you evaluate Gerad Parker’s first game of the season calling plays?
MF: “I told him, ‘Shoot. Every game do that.’ It’s pretty simple. The way you called it that game, every game should be like that. I don’t want to not do him justice. As I’m the coordinator, go back to my defensive coordinator days, play calling at times can be overrated. Oh, man, you called such a great game. They executed. The operation was amazing. That’s what I really thought was good was the ability for Gerad to collect his thoughts and get them to the signalers and get them in. Then say hold, hold, hold. This is the look. I want to change the call. Those are things that I was really impressed by. Then between series the communication, in terms of the different looks that we’re seeing versus their defense. The ability to say, Hey, Sam, here’s the looks. O-line, here’s the looks. That is what’s impressive. Guys, you all can have a call sheet and just close your eyes and, OK, let’s call this play. The preparation, the execution and the adjustments is really what makes a coordinator successful. That’s what impressed me more than anything about Gerad.”
Q: Did Audric Estimé come out because of the fumble? How did you feel the running back rotation worked out?
MF: “Let’s start with the room. Five guys that are all talented. I told [running backs] coach [Deland] McCullough that he’s done a great job at keeping those guys unselfish, at putting them in situations. They have packages based off who they are and some of their strengths. I was really impressed by the depth and the execution of that room. To address Audric, yep, he was taken out of the game. I talked with coach McCullough about it. Because there’s a standard that he and our offense and our team has set for that room, and you can’t put the ball on the ground. We don’t care if you’re Sam Hartman or Audric Estimé. If you’re not doing the things that we say are the standards for this program in this room, then there’s consequences. Part of that was, ‘Hey, Audric, you’re going to be pulled for a little bit, because you can’t put the ball on the ground.’ Then it’s also a credit to Audric Estimé, who is the guy. We all know that he’s the guy. To be able to say, 'OK, I’m going to stand here on the sideline for a couple series or however long it was. When you give me my opportunity, I’m go in there and I’m going to go do my job.'
"It’s a credit to Deland McCullough for the trust that his players have in him and a credit to Audric Estimé that we all know is the guy. RB1. To be able to accept that you’re going to be held accountable because you did not perform to our standard. You put the ball on the ground. It was a great example to not just those two but to everybody in that room. Even our entire team. Nobody’s bigger than the standard. Nobody’s above the standard. If you don’t perform to the standard, there’s consequences. We understand that. We know Audric Estimé didn’t mean to put the ball on the ground. But the ball was on the ground. So we have to hold him accountable to that standard. It’s actually a really proud moment to be able to see that. There’s no pouting. There’s no guy throwing his helmet and mad because he’s taken out. No, it’s hold me accountable, Coach. That’s your job. When I get the opportunity to go back in, I will. And he did and did a great job.”
Q: What are the keys to transition your defense to playing a more traditional offense after the triple option?
MF: “Part of that is in the preparation. We did not just go exclusively Navy only defense. Within our Navy personnel, we were able to play, as I call, normal defense. And we saw some normal formations out of Navy. So we were able to really do that in our preparation. The adjustment from where we were to now won’t be a big one, because we’ve been able to do it through camp. Even when we go against our offense, it’s good-on-good. We have to be able to play normal defense versus our offense. I really think that the transition back to just playing normal defenses won’t be tremendous. The other thing is that we have to be smart in terms of our preparation. You can’t go from that Navy game plan to a game plan this week that is super complicated. You have to make sure — our only objective for our coaches, I said, is making sure our great players play great. In order to do that, that is a coach and a player challenge. As coaches you have to give your great players an opportunity to play great by making sure you do things that they can execute. Players, you have to embrace that and understand, OK, here’s the game plan. I’m going to study it. I’m going to work it so that on Saturday I have a chance to go out there and play great.”
Q: How did the two new starting guards play?
MF: “They both had winning performances, which was good to see. The physicality was extremely impressive. There is some execution, some calls, some techniques that we have to improve at. But they really performed at a high level, especially being their first game starting at guard. When you have those two guys outside and Zeke Correll in the middle that have played so much ball, it helps those guys to be able to get into the correct calls. Sometimes you can watch and say, ‘What kind of calls do you have in the run game?’ There are calls where we’re doubling back to a certain person. If this guy moves, we’re going to double back to this person. Those things we have to make sure we’re all on the same page. But when you have those two bookends and that guy in the middle that can help out, it helps in that transition. Those guys, they performed really well. I’m proud of the way they played.”
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