Notre Dame football head coach Marcus Freeman spoke to reporters following Saturday's 45-7 win over Wake Forest in Notre Dame Stadium.
The No. 19 Irish moved to 8-3 on the season ahead of next Saturday's regular season finale at Stanford (7 p.m. EST on Pac-12 Network).
Here's a lightly edited transcript of Freeman's postgame press conference. Questions may be paraphrased.
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Opening statement:
Freeman: “Really proud of our seniors and the way they went out there and performed for 60 minutes. It's a special group that led us in the past 14 days since the last time we played. They led us to practice the way that we had to prepare to give us a chance to be successful out there today.
“It's a special group that obviously played their last game in Notre Dame Stadium. You think about the 500th game in Notre Dame Stadium, it's something special. This place is special. The history, the people, the ones that have come before us that give us this opportunity to be here.
“Our fans were incredible. Think about last game of the year, sold out crowd. You could feel the fans, the atmosphere. It's just a reminder of how awesome and grateful we are for this opportunity to be a part of this place, this football program, with obviously [athletic director] Jack [Swarbrick] and Father John [Jenkins]. It meant a lot to me, personally, to be able to get this win for their last game at Notre Dame Stadium.
"We're all motivated by different things, but that was a huge part of my motivation. Really happy we were able to do that.”
Q: You guys outscored opponents here 262-71 at Notre Dame Stadium. Outside of what happened against Ohio State, but rebounding from what happened last year against Marshall and Stanford, how are you guys able to be so good at this venue?
Freeman: “We talk about it often, how special it is to play in Notre Dame Stadium — the history, the tradition. We take pride in our performance in Notre Dame Stadium. That doesn't excuse us for, obviously, the performances that we have to have on the road. There's a sense of pride when you come out of the locker room and you touch that 'Play Like a Champion' sign that you carry when you take this field."
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Q: Quarterback Sam Hartman was shaky early. Understandable, considering who he was going against. He really got it going; made some really nice throws. What did you see out of his performance? To send him out of this place this way, what did that mean to you?
Freeman: “He's a poster child for consistency. We tried to create some early success, some early easy throws. One was dropped or maybe thrown a little bit high. He was able to just really get to the sideline, focus on what he had to do — hey, what did you see — and really went out there and performed really well.
“It can't be easy. I've done it as a coach. I remember couple years ago we played Cincinnati. There is normal distractions that the human element presents when you play a team, an opponent, where you know every person on that side like Sam does.
“It's different. He was with those guys for five years, with that coaching staff. So for him to be able to put that distraction away and perform the way he did is a testament to who he is and the confidence and consistency that he provides.”
Q: The offense scored on four consecutive possessions and seized control of the game and finished with like 450 yards, just the one late turnover. How much of that is what you expected to see from this group all along, and how much was it needed?
Freeman: “It definitely was needed. The confidence — when you don't have the performance that you aspire to have, it messes with your confidence, right?
“You can be as courageous as you want, but still have a lack of confidence inside because of the performance. And so it was much needed. It's a testament to how they prepared, the adjustments they made and the execution of the game plan.
"I'm really happy for [Offensive coordinator] Coach [Gerad] Parker and that whole offensive staff and that offensive side of the ball. Really pleased with the performance tonight."
Q: You got back to your really aggressive use of timeouts late in the first half. Got a blocked field goal and then got a field goal out of it. How important was that to maybe recapture that and send that message to your team again?
Freeman: “The majority of times I'm in that situation I have the utmost confidence in our offense and Sam to march us down the field and try to create something positively.
“I know there has been a game or two that maybe something hasn't gone our way and I kind of let the clock run out. I know at Clemson after they got that first down when we were on defense, I let him just run out the clock.
“I have a lot of confidence in our offensive staff and our offensive game plan, and that was a reflection of why I called those timeouts today.
Q: The wide receivers had a big game. How important was that to have those guys come through? And not just Chris Tyree, who has been maybe the most consistent wide receiver.
Freeman: “I saw Rico [Flores Jr.] went over 100 yards, which is the first time for maybe any of our wideouts this year. It's just a testimony to just continue to battle, continue to prepare, continue to work. Because you don't know when the opportunities present themselves.
"That was a conversation, a message, I had to the team this week. In terms of individuals, you don't know when your opportunity is coming. It could be in the game. It can be if you're redshirting. It can be a coach.
“You just have to continue to make the choice to work, to do the thing — everybody wants, this is what I say. Everybody wants to catch 100 yards and have 100 yards receiving. But who's willing to put the work in that it takes so when the opportunity presents itself like today, you do it?"
“I saw Tobias [Merriweather] had a big catch. I was walking to the training room and he was in there studying film and studying extra by himself. I remember saying, that's an example of what I am talking about. Continue to put that work in. At some point It's going to be rewarded. I said something to him after he scored that TD catch. That's a reflection of your preparation.
“They have to believe that. I don't really believe in luck. I am a faithful person, but I believe in cause and effect. So you have to continue to put the work in. At some point, if you do it the right way and you're consistent in how you put the work in, you will have the effect you want. You will have the production and performance you want."
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Q: What was the importance of keeping Audric Estimé in to get him over 100 yards at the end of the game?
Freeman: “I'm never a huge fan of that, because there is just — you know me, I'm always thinking. This game is over. It's only fair to the kid. But we talked about it, and we wanted to get him over 100 yards. I think he ended up having 115. That was important to us. Possibly his last game in Notre Dame Stadium to be able to get him over 100 yards. So, it was good for him to do that.”
Q: It's been a long road back for Eli Raridon. I know you mentioned earlier in the season some mental hurdles. Did you see something during the bye week where you thought today was coming?
Freeman: “It isn't one thing. It's an accumulation of weeks and practices. When he finally was cleared to play from where he was in to now, it's just a process of him gaining that confidence.
“He's not at his full potential yet. He'll continue to gain that confidence. Today was a great reflection of how far he's come since he was cleared medically. For him to have some of those catches and get hit low, it gives him that confidence that, hey, I'm going to be just fine."
Q: Sam Hartman certainly had times in his life and career where he has had to battle back from adversity. His last game statistically he had to battle back. What did you see from him leading up to the game and how closely do his teammates watch that?
Freeman: “When you're the quarterback, you're the leader just because of the position you're in. Everybody's going to watch the way you prepare. The one thing I've said with Sam Hartman, I said earlier, he is the model of consistency. His approach isn't dictated off of what happened the previous game or who we're playing. His approach is his approach. The way he prepares is the way he prepares.
“I even challenged him to in some way find a way to do it even better. He wants a better result. We all want better results. How do we do continue to do what we do but do it better? His teammates see the way he works. His teammates see the work he puts in. He has a lot of respect from everybody in this program."
Q: Six home games this year, I think your defense allowed eight touchdowns total. You're just out of the moment here, but if you reflect on that, how impressive is that? Aside from the pride you spoke about earlier, how much of an identity of this program has that become?
Freeman: “You know, obviously, that defensive football has a special place in my heart just because how I've grown up in the game. I was talking to [defensive coordinator] Coach [Al] Golden after the game. We're upset about seven points. We're really upset about seven points.
"They did some good things in the first half that really we hadn't seen on film. The adjustments that we could make, that Coach Golden can make. It's credit to Coach Golden and his staff that they can make those. Man, they have answers. They're able to get the adjustments to the players, and the players can go out there and execute."
"I've always had a mindset if they don't score, they don't win. We have to evaluate ourselves. Every individual. That's a reflection of our entire team. It's easy to point the finger at somebody else. All that does is make you feel better about yourself. That doesn't help our team get better.
"I know tomorrow we'll be in there and we're going to critique every single play. I'm sure defensively there's going to be a lot to improve from, but I like to be upset about seven points."
Q: The decision to make the onside kick in the third quarter, was that just the look they gave you or something you've been wanting to try for a while?
Freeman: “We had seen it on film. We had practiced it for a couple weeks, and we've seen it on film. The first two kickoffs we were like, 'It's there. It's there.' I'm like, 'It's not the right time.' I said, 'If we score again, let's do it.'
"At some point if you're going to do it, you got to call it. If you believe that you can execute it, you have to call it. There's no point of practicing something and getting a look that you are looking for and not calling it. So I told them, 'Let's do it.'
"It was a great job by [special teams coordinator] Coach [Marty] Biagi of preparing for that moment and executing when it mattered."
Q: Kind of building on the receiver point, with Flores, Jordan Faison, Jaden Greathouse, they've all had flashes this year, but have never all been on at the same time. Were they just ready for it? I was interested the job that wide receivers coach Chansi Stuckey and Parker have done to keep them going. You guys have needed this.
Freeman: “I wish there was one thing that happened. Similar to the question earlier, it is a constant chase of improvement. If you do that, and you get these opportunities that we had today, you got to be ready to take advantage of them.
“But you don't know. We didn't know last week we were going to have — we had a couple three-and-outs, we weren't rolling. We didn't have these opportunities. That doesn't dictate how you prepare. To me, it's a reflection of Coach Stuckey, Coach Parker in the development and ability to get frustrated guys, right — they're frustrated like all of us were, when you don't get the results you want.
“Frustration can't determine how you prepare. To see Rico and those guys out there that were ready for the moment, although I'm going to have to talk to Rico about that ball he put on ground.
"I'm proud of them and proud of the way they prepare. Now how do you handle some success? Rico had 100 yards. How do prepare? How do you handle that? Do you continue to do the things that have to do to get better? When you get to the next opportunity in seven days, do you take advantage of it?"
Q: On the flip side, pass defense, not just at home but away, seven touchdown passes all year. What have been the biggest ingredients for that being on all year?
Freeman: “The ability to play pass defense is the confidence you have in your front seven or six to stop the run. There's always that one defender. If you're going to commit him to the run game, where you are going to expose some thing in the pass game. If you're going to put him in the pass game, then you have to believe you can stop the run with six guys up front, doing some things up front with the D-line.
“If you can't stop the run playing pass defense, then you're not going to be able to play a lot of pass defense. That's a credit to Coach Golden and different schemes we use in our pass defense. We can't play coverage. We can't play coverage if we don't believe we can stop the run with a light box.”
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