Notre Dame head football coach Marcus Freeman met with the media following the team's "jersey' scrimmage in Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday. Here's everything he had to say. Answers are largely verbatim. Questions may have been edited for brevity and clarity.
OPENING STATEMENT
“We got in 80-plus plays, which is great. We got some live situations in. Obviously, the quarterbacks weren’t live, but it's great to see. I told them after practice there was a lot of good on both sides. And, as a coach, you try to create this build-up to the outcome of this game, with the winning side of getting the blue jerseys. At the end of the day, it’s the ability to get them to focus on what it takes to get the blue jerseys and to get their job done on that play. And so, I saw a lot of good things.
“The defense won. And I told them after practice, it came down to two pick-sixes. I've been in a lot of jersey scrimmages as a player and as a coach. If you have one — but, for sure — two pick-sixes, there's a great chance as a defense that you're going to win. That hasn't happened in the past. This is the first time since I've been here — I've been head coach — that the defense has won the jersey scrimmage. So, it was good to see just the competition, the competitive spirit on both sides and some guys stepping up and making some plays. So with that, I'll open up for questions.”
Q: I know Riley Leonard's not able to fully practice with you guys right now. But you can see him right next to you and kind of running through the motions. How beneficial is it for him to be able to be sort of active and be out there and learning with you guys?
Marcus Freeman: “That's just a reflection of who he is. This is his idea, and he was going to challenge himself to have 100% focus on every rep. So, he had the headset on. He knew every call that was going in, and he went and stepped through every single one. That's who he’s been. He's actually practicing a little bit more, doing some 7-on-7s and some other things, but today we didn't want to let him go. And so, for him to get work like that it just is a reflection of who he is. That's going to make him better. And that was my challenge, as a head coach, to him is that, ‘Hey, what can you do — although you're physically not practicing on Saturday — what can you do to get better?’ And he showed that today.”
Q: Is it difficult for you and your staff to grade the defensive ends and the pressure they’re getting when you’re rotating quarterbacks and rotating units, and thus communication about protections might be less than ideal?
MF: “I don't think it's hard to gauge. Are you doing your job or not? The biggest thing I challenge the quarterbacks with is that you can't get comfortable in the red jerseys. This is practice No. 11, and you’re used to, in 10 practices, not being touched. I'm going to try to call a sack when I truly think it’s a sack. It's never perfect, but I did feel some edge pressure. I don't know if they would have been sacks. I would think the quarterback steps up and gets the ball out of his hand. But that's the double-edged sword. Do you live them up [allow them to get hit] or do you keep them red [not allow them to be tackled]? And I want to keep them protected and make sure that we're keeping our quarterbacks healthy. But I did feel some pressure. A lot of times, when you really look at it, if you can get those defensive guys — as an offensive mindset — to run behind the quarterback, that quarterback is going to step up and deliver the ball. So, it'll be interesting to go back and look at the film, but it doesn't matter who's at quarterback as much as do the tackles execute and do their job? Is the quarterback able to step up and get rid of the ball?”
Q: Jayden Harrison has been out with a boot. What is his injury status?
MF: “He had a plantar fasciitis strain, and so he'll probably be out through the end of spring. We just need to rest it and let it recover. It’s similar to the JD Bertrand’s injuryr that he had in the Senior Bowl. He'll be back. We just want to keep it protected, let it heal right now.”
Q: Jayden Thomas has been held out. What’s he been dealing with?
MF: “Hamstring.”
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Q: What were you hoping to see from the offensive line this spring and how has their performance matched up to that?
MF: “We've always said we're an O-line/D-line-driven program. So, what do you want to see? I want to see them be able to run the ball, be able to protect the quarterback and execute the job at a high level. There's a couple of competitions [going on]. You’ve got a competition at right tackle. And Rocco [Spindler] is trying to get back to being 100%. So at some point when he's 100%, you're going to have a competition with him somewhere in [the interior of the line]. And [Charles] Jagusah has pretty much been the No. 1 at the left tackle. So, you're trying to create competition, but understanding, as an offensive unit that you need that consistency in those five guys. So, I'm trying to get them both. But listen, I want to see them be able to run and pass the ball.”
Q: Some young guys stood out today, that I wondered if you could speak to the kind spring they’ve been having for you beyond today — CJ Carr, Micah Gilbert and Boubacar Traore?
MF: “CJ has been great. Coming in the winter, mature. Really understands offensive concepts with defensive football. Smart guy. Makes great decisions, and so I've been really impressed with him at quarterback. Micah has come in and really done a great job. He's performed at a high level, even getting some reps with the 1s at times. Now, we’ve got a couple of injuries, but he's going to do some things for us this year. I really like where he's at and where he's progressing to.
“And then Boubacar. I tell Boubacar, ‘Just keep showing up.’ And he keeps showing up. And that isn’t just against the 3s and the 2s. He’s showing up against the 1s, and so that's what you want to see — that depth, that competition and those guys that can step up and make plays. But all three of those guys have done some really positive things, along with some others.”
Q: What are you seeing leadership-wise from Jack Kiser with the young linebackers?
MF: “He’s the elder statesman. I was making fun of him in the pregame [stretching] lines: ‘How many practices or spring games have you been in, in this stadium?’ He's been here a lot, but he made a decision to come back for a reason. He wants to improve what he's doing, specifically he wants to improve at his position and his traits and his skill set, but also he wants to make sure his team reaches its full potential. So, he's been an unbelievable vocal leader by example. Just a great mentor for those young linebackers in terms of how to approach every day, how to work, how to go about your business. So grateful to have him back for his sixth year and have him a part of this team.”
Q: Is there a potential, with the young linebackers’ athleticism, for Al Golden to do some different things with pressures? Does it maybe add a little variety to the playbook potentially?
MF: “Yeah, I think it’s similar to how we used Marist [Liufau] last year. On third down, if it’s a passing situation, you want to get your best four pass rushers on the field, no matter what position they are on first and second down. And so, Kyngstonn [Vilamu-Asa] and [Jaylen] Sneed have both shown the ability to be able to rush the passer from the line of scrimmage. And Jaylen did it last year, but Kyngstonn has shown the ability to do that. So, is he one of the top four? That’s to be determined, but he's had a heck of a spring and he's done a really good job, just from the moment he's gotten here to where he's at now. And he's going to help us this year.”
Q: At what point during the spring or maybe this before spring started, did you feel like CJ Carr had sort of this competence of how to run the offense?
MF: “I don’t think it was one specific day, but you saw the way he came in during bowl practices as a high school senior and just soaked it all in. And I guess you’ve got to give credit to his high school [coaches] in his development. Pretty knowledgeable about this game of football, but he came in, didn’t say much. He just soaked it in. He was a sponge, and now, as you see him through spring, he's progressing and getting better. And every time I walk by [QBs] coach [Gino] Guidugli’s office, he's in there. And that's how you improve. Can you retain the information that your coaches are trying to give you, so that you go out and do it when it matters the most. For different people, to retain that information, it takes different things. But that's what you see out of CJ Carr and a lot of these young guys. They're wanting to learn it. Like, how do I figure this thing out and process it? So, now when it's out there in the stadium, I can go out there and perform. And so, he's really done a good job.”
Q: We didn’t see Tyson Ford out there today or Tuesday. Can you clarify his status?
MF: “He’s taking some personal time off, just to figure out what he wants to do.”
Q:: Is he still with the program at this time?
MF: “Yes.”
Q: In advance of the transfer portal opening again this spring, how can you guys be proactive so you won’t be surprised by anything?
MF: “It's called having honest conversations with your players. And that's what we’ve got to do. And that's what our job as coaches is, to have honest conversations, have relationships with our players, so there are no surprises. And so, that's what we do. This isn't just a transfer-portal discussion. This is year-round. If you love your players and you want to see them reach their full potential, you're going to have honest conversations with them. And so I don't want it to change because there's a transfer portal [window] coming up. That's just what we should do if we're mentors, leaders to young people. We should have a relationship with them.
“And we should be honest with them and they should be honest with us, so that when they make a decision — I want to stay; I want to transfer — it's not a surprise. But that comes from having a relationship with them, which takes time and it takes investing in those young people.”
Q: Where do you need to see improvement with a week to go in the spring?
MF: “All over. It’s never a finished product. What you’re trying to do is build this group of coaches and talented individuals to make sure when we play game one, we’re ready to perform. We have to be more consistent on both sides of the ball at doing our jobs, making plays on offense, making plays on defense. Our special teams has to get improved. There’s not just one area where we need to improve. We need to improve at everything. Everything. But that’s the mindset of this program. We’re not satisfied. You’re never satisfied. You’re building this group so that when you play these 12 guaranteed opportunities, you are performing at maximum capacity. In order to do that, you gotta have a never satisfied mindset. That’s what everybody in this program has to have.”
Q: In terms of the rotation at running back, how do you see that sorting itself out?
MF: “Yeah. I don’t know what the clear rotation is going to be as we go into College Station, but we don’t need an answer to that right now. We’ve got some talented dudes in that room. We gotta find ways to get them the ball. In order to prove to us that you’re going to get the ball, you gotta continuously be trusted to do your job. I love what I’ve seen in terms of protection, in terms of executing, but it’s a long way to getting to College Station. We’ll get to that point, and we’ll talk about reps and how we’ll get them the ball. For sure, we’ll have discussions of how do we get all these playmakers on offense the ball? We’ve got to find different ways to do that.”
Q: It seems like Jaylen Sneed has taken a leap this spring to become a more complete player. What have you seen out of him?
MF: “Yeah. Commitment. Commitment to it. He’s always been a talented football player. But that’s a word that can mean unfilled potential at times. He is committed to it. He’s showing up every day, really being obsessed with how do I get better, meeting with Coach Bullough. I’ve been really pleased with how he’s performed consistently through 10 practices. As you look at the last two years, Sneed’s a guy that would show up. He would flash like, ‘Man, he’s a freak.’ Now he’s consistently doing his job, which is more important than anything.”
Q: Jaiden Ausberry has been getting reps at rover and nickelback. Where do you see his position flexibility moving forward?
MF: “He’s a guy that we’ve said, man, he’s just done such a good job at what we’ve asked him to do. We gotta put him at different places to see how we can get him on the field. That’s a compliment to him and what he’s done. It was really probably over the last two or three practices. We said, OK, let’s try Jaiden Ausberry at a couple different positions, because we’re not going to be able to keep him off the field. He’s a talented individual. That’s what spring’s about: being able to move your pieces around and saying, OK, how do we formulate the scheme around the pieces? It’s not the vice versa. It’s not here’s our scheme. This person has to fit into it. It’s, OK, let’s get the best players on the field and formulate the best defense around those pieces. Ausberry is doing a great job.”
Q: Has the defense been ahead of the offense most of the spring just because of the veteran nature of the defensive players and Al Golden’s scheme?
MF: “Year three. It’s the same thing I said to you guys last year after year two. When you go into year three now pretty much between Golden, Mickens, Al Washington being consistent in terms of the voices in those rooms, year three of the same scheme — it’s an NFL pro-style defense. There’s a lot of defense.
“Year one we couldn’t perform at the pace, at the level that he wanted. That’s aways the challenge. How do you get these athletes to play fastest? That’s the challenge of a coach. It’s not to be so complicated that you’re trying to confuse the opponent. It’s like, OK, how can I get these people to understand what I want and play fastest? Well, it’s year three of — now, we’ve had enhancements but pretty much of — the same scheme with a lot of the veterans coming back.
“Whereas the offense it’s practice 11 of a new scheme. They’re going to be ahead defensively, because a lot of returning players and year three, then the offense. But the offense has done some really good things. What you’ll see from the offensive side is that they’re going to get every look imaginable. They’re not playing against a Marcus Freeman defense that you’re going to see a couple different things. You’re going to see everything with Al Golden. It’s going to help them improve.
“If they can understand that — which I know they do, the coaches do — this is really good for you. What you’re seeing defensively, this is really good for you. You’re going against one of the best in the country. This is going to be one of the best defenses in the country. That’s what our offense is going against every day. But at the end of the day, that’s going to make you better.
“We talk about it all the time, these bloody wounds. This is going to make them better. I know it might be frustrating today. You don’t win the blue jerseys. Man, there’s sometimes that the defense presents some challenges, but at the end of the day, this is going to make our offensive team better.”
Q: Mike Denbrock mentioned Jaden Greathouse’s ability to play all three wide receiver spots. Where have you seen his growth?
MF: “His natural position coming into Notre Dame was probably a slot receiver. Out of necessity, out of, really, the confidence he built in our coaching staff last year, we had to put him outside and do some different things. Now, going into year two, he’s built the capacity to be effective inside as a slot receiver or go outside. To have a guy that can do that, it’s going to truly benefit us.”
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