One day out from the Fiesta Bowl, Notre Dame remains in the clear with COVID-19 cases and will have no virus-related absences, as it stands.
The Irish didn't make their COVID-19 protocols stricter in recent weeks, but were more stringent in reminding players of the reality surrounding the virus' recent surge. It has caused six teams to pull out of bowl games. About 24 hours ahead of the game, Notre Dame is in position to avoid such a letdown.
“We have everybody available for the game," head coach Marcus Freeman said. "What we did was made sure they understood how important it is to make good decisions as they left campus and came down to Arizona. We have to make smart decisions and know where we’re at, understand that whatever it’s going to take to make sure we have everybody healthy and available to play this game, let’s do it.”
No. 5 Notre Dame (11-1) faces No. 9 Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl on Saturday (1 p.m. ET). Friday, Freeman spoke with reporters via Zoom for the final time before the game. Here are some of the topics he addressed.
On cornerback Cam Hart's status
“Cam Hart will be ready to go. He got a thigh bruise Monday in practice when we got here. A knee hit him in the thigh and he was out for a day. He was practicing yesterday and he will be ready to go.”
On his head-coaching debut
“You attack each task being the person you are, the person who got you to this position. There’s something new every day. Tomorrow will be my first time being a head coach, and it will be something new, but you attack it one thing at a time, one day at a time and figure this thing out.”
On nerves before his debut
“Right now, I’m focused on making sure we have a good walkthrough today and finish our final preparations. I’m usually nervous before every game because you can’t go out there and do it anymore. You live through these young people. I’m most excited for them to go out there and compete and play against a really good Oklahoma State team.
“We’ll get to tomorrow when it presents itself. I’ll figure out what I’ll say to this group of guys tomorrow, but there’s nothing else to be said. We’ve practiced, we’re prepared. They want to go play.”
On his to-do list before the game
“It will still be very similar. We have a walkthrough. We have to go to the stadium and come back. The players will have some time off before dinner tonight. My mindset will still be similar in terms of last-minute preparations.
“We have to wake up and play. We don’t have a lot of time to be thinking about what we’re going to do tomorrow morning. We have to get up early and have to be ready to go from the minute we get to the lobby. That’s my whole thought process. What can I do to make sure our guys wake up and are ready to go in the morning?
You have to trust your preparation. Then you have to go out there and execute. You see it over and over that everyone has a plan for success, and they’re not that different. But it’s the ability to go out there on gameday and execute. The teams that are executing are the ones who are winning these bowl games.”
On what he learned during the 2021 season
“It was a humbling experience for me to start the season. You come from Cincinnati where we had a lot of success, you feel like you really had a good spring, really had a good fall. Then you go into the first game against Florida State, you’re like, ‘Oh crap, we’re not as good as I thought defensively.’ We didn’t play as well. Toledo, we didn’t play as well.
“It really made me lean on our staff and say, ‘What changes do we need to make?’ What small change do we need to make to make sure this scheme fits the players we have?
“What you’ve seen over the course over the year is trying to make small, strategic changes to our scheme to make sure it fits the players we have. Then all of a sudden, your best player, Kyle Hamilton, goes down. You have to say, ‘How do we fit this scheme around who’s the next guy in?’ This group has trusted us. The coaching staff has done a tremendous job figuring out the best way to teach these guys.
"We’ve worked as a team. The defensive staff has been a team all year. Taking other people’s ideas is something we’ve done. The ability to get to this final product we have, it’s been a growing experience. But as of the Stanford game, we were playing our best ball. I hope that momentum can continue in the same direction as we go out there tomorrow.”
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