Allow me to open this article with the ending of my first paragraph from the Northern Illinois game review: “To lose a game like this in Marcus Freeman’s crucial 3rd year is a massive setback that likely permanently alters the direction of this program in 2024 and beyond.”
How does that look now? If that’s not enough how about the ending to that same article with Notre Dame sitting at a miserable 1-1 on the season?
“It doesn’t really matter if I like Freeman or not but something just feels off about him and the program. I can’t put my finger on it. It’s like there’s this shiny veneer coming from the program (in contrast to the bulldog-nature of the Kelly regime) that seems hip and cool at times but also somewhat empty. Many of the pieces feel like they’re in place and he has a ton of qualities that should be paying dividends by now–and they just aren’t. It feels like someone great is driving the ship but the ship keeps hitting an iceberg out of nowhere and dear readers Titanic references are never good in year 3 of a coaching era.”
This has been a good lesson in how one game can bring out too much emotion and we’re not always great at understanding the big picture after heart-wrenching losses. To be fair, I don’t think anyone truly understands how Notre Dame lost to NIU. It remains a bizarre relic of this regular season which now seems in the distant past.
In spite of it, the Irish will play for the National Championship on January 20th.
Win the Championship
Before we get to the really good stuff, let me pump the brakes just enough to feel like the grumpy old man yelling at everyone for having too much fun. I may not think Notre Dame can beat Ohio State and they head into Monday as underdogs according to the bookmakers. What though the odds be, great or small.
This season has turned into a resounding success and I’m not saying losing to Ohio State will change the narrative that much for the worse. However, I think it’s important to head into this opportunity firmly believing the Irish are worthy enough and have to pour everything into winning this championship with true immortality on the line.
I know the team will do that, but as a fan base I’m laying down a flag about not being cool with this:
Do not buy this kind of merchandise.
This is Notre Dame, we’re not champions unless we win on January 20th in Atlanta. Three playoff wins with a Sugar and Orange bowl victories included is awesome and can’t be denied. This 2024 team probably already cemented its legacy as one of the best Notre Dame teams in history to not win a title–should they lose the last game. That’s a pretty cool legacy.
An even better legacy and where the bar is ultimately set is National Champions.
Vibes
Shifting gears a little bit, there’s no question the vibes around Notre Dame right now are immaculate. Hip and cool but empty? I don’t think so!
This transformation throughout 2024 has been fascinating to watch unfold. Up until 4-6 weeks ago there were still plenty of doubters everywhere. Particularly within the Irish fanbase there were complaints and criticisms of this program that still held plenty of validity. Sure, 11-1 was nice but it was a really weak schedule (and we know how much some Irish fans can wave away results if it’s not against an insane schedule!) and it’s true you can only get so excited about top wins over Louisville and Army.
With more winning comes more belief and that’s where nearly all of the Notre Dame fans sit today.
What’s more crazy is how much the rest of the nation has been rallying around this Irish team. It’s early 2025 and neutrals are enjoying and actually liking Notre Dame?
Is Notre Dame football likable now? https://t.co/2jzzwvBQeZ
— Ralph D. Russo (@ralphDrussoATH) January 10, 2025
I’ll get to the other side of Marcus Freeman in a little bit, but this outcome with Notre Dame…actually being…cool…was always the big bet made when Brian Kelly left for Baton Rouge and the school decided to promote a high-performing but deeply inexperienced 35-year old to one of the most pressure-packed jobs in sports.
You have to be a winner regardless, right?
PAAAWWWWWLLLLLLL.
Still, the chance with Freeman felt right at the time because he had this type of ceiling as a brand refresh. Brian Kelly will probably never get the credit he deserves for creating a paradigm shift in South Bend and now Freeman feels like a natural extension of that growth.
I’ve felt strongly about this for 20 years–Notre Dame needed to ditch the stodgy, fuddy-duddy, and stuffy culture of tradition weighing everything down on campus and get up to speed with the times. They needed youth, an invigorating cool factor, and an intellect to pull it all together. Marcus Freeman is nailing all of these areas–to say nothing of his image as a young family man with approximately 14 children.
Pure Coaching
I don’t want it get to lost about how awesome of a coaching job this has been for Notre Dame. Like I said, it comes down to winning. And while the country seems to warming up to the Irish under Freeman we have to focus on the incredible development from everyone on the coaching staff to take this injured team this far and into the National Championship Game.
Freeman, Golden, Denbrock & Co. have turned into one heck of a team. Freeman has made his fair share of coaching gaffes and mistakes so far in his Irish career but he appears to be learning at an incredible rate. This is what we really needed to happen and it’s great to see his development unfolding, as well.
Forgive me for not living in the moment for a second, but it’s interesting to think about what the long-term future may look like as both Golden and Denbrock are no longer young bucks and may not be around nearly as long as Freeman, who we should note, just turned only 39 years old this past Friday after the Orange Bowl win.
Stability
I saw a random college football video from a personality that stated Notre Dame is the best positioned team in all of college football now. The theory was basically this: independent scheduling, ‘easy’ access to the playoffs, ‘guaranteed’ playoff home games, and a steady stream of post-season money to fuel NIL madness. Yes, making $20 million in a month of playoffs opens some eyes about football independence, I see!
I don’t think it’s quite that simple–and anyone who pays even a little bit of attention to Notre Dame recruiting will know more NIL money isn’t necessarily going to change things drastically for the Irish.
Maybe things will change, though?
One of the best things about what we’re witnessing from Notre Dame right now is the wonder of where we could be headed under Freeman in the coming years now. What a reversal after the NIU debacle! An increase in recruiting with CJ Carr truly being an impact redshirt freshman does have my heart racing with dreams of a generational multi-year run to come.
Okay, so maybe 3 National Championships in the next 5 years probably isn’t happening. Nonetheless, you have to admire the foundation in place at Notre Dame. As frustrating as it can be sometimes, the NBC deal is injecting more money into the program. The 12-team playoff looks like a major victory for Notre Dame’s independence and place in the sport. Facilities are top-notch and the new 150,000 square foot Shields Hall is coming in the fall of 2026, too.
With the coaching staff and culture in place–plus a new athletic director stating he’s maniacally obsessed with winning a National Championship–it feels like Notre Dame has finally figured out how to navigate and lead the way forward in college football. All of this in a time when the sport and college athletics in general are still in a pure state of chaos!
I very much didn’t think this is possible after the NIU loss. I’m not trying to be downer but I’m almost not sure there isn’t some smoke and mirrors going on and we’re going to get pasted by Ohio State. But I don’t really think that’s true either. The 2012 team felt like that, narrowly getting by a bunch of teams before running into a juggernaut. Aside from that horrible, horrible game against the Huskies, this team has handled it’s admittedly weak schedule how it should. And then it beat Indiana handily, trailed for all of four minutes against mighty Georgia, and – depleted as we are – managed to beat a Penn State team that was clearly pretty darn good. Ohio State’s beating teams handily and they’re the rightful favorite but I don’t think they’re 2012 Alabama.
I do think it’s absolutely huge that Freeman got Golden and Denbrock (and that the school would pony up for them?) Golden panned out better than anyone could have expected. Denbrock is proven and while the offense isn’t perfect I think the run game being as good as it is, and good enough to win and win and win, comes back to him.
I do want to see a boost in recruiting long term. I think this staff is clearly very good at identifying guys who fit what they want and can develop well. Looking at this incoming class, I think it’s clear we have certain types – physical DBs and big, long lineman who may be raw or from smaller programs – but so far so good. That said, it’s always a gamble to take on a lot of projects and hope they pan out, especially at certain positions. QB. I’m talking about QB. Carr will hopefully be a star and I think a lot of Angeli. But the death star teams of the last decade+ have generally strung together great QB play.
Go Irish. I would have bet anything back in September that we would not be here. Yet here we are.
I feel reasonably good about not getting totally pantsed by OSU. The 2012 team’s F+ was 1.39 and Bama’s was 2.68 (which, to be fair, includes the pantsing for each); by contrast our current F+ is 1.95 and tOSU’s is 2.42. They should be favored, for sure, but also if we can shorten the game by keeping the clock running and this turns into a field goal contest then I think we have a shot. So let’s do that.
How is F+ interpreted?
We may very well lose 42-14 versus Ohio State. But while it would be a sour note to end the season on, I don’t think that the 2012 season is at all like this one. For one, the new playoff format means we have 3 top 10 wins in the past month, something that should make the noisiest of the schedule complainers blush. Secondly, the 2012 team won 4-6 games by putting together shoe-string and gum wins in big moments. This team has essentially only had one of those games (and 1 loss). This in spite of being absolutely devastated by injuries.
This week is the new high water mark for the program in 30 years, and while there is absolutely a possibility that Freeman and co. never make it past this mark, it’s hard not to look optimistically at the future of the program. We aren’t one of those dominant steamroller teams of the past decade, but in a new era of CFB there is no guarantee to be one every year. I am very excited to keep rolling the dice with ND and play for the right breaks at the right time, starting with Monday night.
jeez don’t jinx it
😉
So pick the opponent again!
Gotta wait for the preview post to find out which opponent I am going to pick by 7 and which position coach I am going to neg next!
It’s a minor point but I do want to speak up in support of Eric’s point about “we’re not champions unless we win on January 20th.”
The merchandise that we shouldn’t buy is just an attempt by the vendors to rake in more of our dollars. With one exception that I soon regretted (it happened years ago, with another team I root for), I have never succumbed to such marketing.
Besides, to call us “champions” at this point would be almost as if we were in a conference and had won a meaningless conference championship game. We’re above all that (absolutely no sarcasm intended).
Who got an “uNDefeated” T-shirt?
My parents got me 12-0 Christmas ornaments in 2012. I’ve never been more furious at them.
I bought a “LOYAL” Tshirt that dropped right after CBK ghosted us. But I never wore it very much. Didn’t feel right. I respect the job BK did to scratch and claw ND back to prominence, regardless of his likeability.
They said, I dug my LOYAL shirt out and have worn it twice this week already. It feels… correct, now. It feels like a CMF shirt that I should have been wearing all along.
The playing field has been leveled with it now being ok to pay players, without the bag man. Especially in the portal this is huge for ND as they can fill the holes left by their less than top 5 recruiting. Look at the key players vs. Georgia, so many from the portal. We just filled key holes for 2025 over the weekend. With what’s transpired in the month, I would expect a top 10 class in 2026.
As far as OSU, we’ve given them two good tussles the last two meetings. Are we not better than we were with Tyler Buckner and Sam Hartman ? I see no reason not to expect another close game. OSU is really good. So is Notre Dame.
I look forward to reading an update of this Sporting News article in a few weeks after we beat OSU:
While I’ll be ecstatic with any kind of victory, I’m hoping for one in the style of 2008 (No. 2 Florida 41, No. 1 Ohio State’s 14) or 2015 (No. 4 Ohio State 42, No. 2 Oregon 20) or 2019 (No. 2 Clemson 44, No. 1 Alabama 16).
As much as I loved Vince Young and Texas beating USC in 2006, I don’t think my heart could take that kind of game (much less a 2OT version like 2003: No. 2 Ohio State 31, No. 1 Miami 24).
GO IRISH!
Great to read you, CleverScreenName — and love the positive vibes!
From a text thread with my brothers on 9/7: “Honestly, without exaggeration the worst loss in ND history. #5 at home against a MAC team. Carnegie Tech is the only competition. I don’t think Freeman will be our coach next year” and with my roommate: “this is an 8-4 team. Against a dogshit schedule. And I don’t think MF can survive that”
So… glad to have been wrong. Possible that I got a touch overemotional about it.
The job that Coach Freeman and his staff did of turning this season around and putting together winning efforts against really good teams with half the team injured is just truly impressive. I’m going to Atlanta, not to watch them win a championship, but just to get a chance to see this team play in person in a big game. I don’t know if they can pull one more off, but if they do, I’ll be happy to be there. And even if they don’t, I’ll be happy to be there.
Have a great trip! I really wish I could’ve gotten away. I think this is gonna be an uphill climb, but do your best to help them out.
Don’t worry, there will be plenty of noise coming from me!
Love this reflective piece, and eveyone’s comments, hopeful yet measured all. That said:
Elevate ND Elevate !
The takes I’ve seen on the interweb on this is overblown. Look at Purdue and the money they rake in being part of the BIG. Look at Vanderbilt… the same. Yes we have a TV contract with NBC, but our TV dollars only keep us average, not SEC or BIG money. Raking in 20 Mil in the playoffs is not an every year thing (at least not yet). It only brings us up to what some other Power schools are already receiving. Being independent, it takes more work to get those dollars, we can’t field an average power team and bring them in.
Secondly, I doubt all that 20 mil goes to football, or even to the athletic department. If the athletic department gets to keep half of it, I’d be surprised.
I remember when Penn St went from independent to a BIG team (the 11th big 10 team). My heart broke as I watched some of the stalwarts of independence join conferences. It was (and is) money driven. For any conference or coach to suggest that ND needs to join a conference because their member schools couldn’t hack it any longer as an independent is no reason for ND to become a conference member. We got 20 mil payout in the playoffs this year, so did Ohio st. If they want to keep it, go back to independence.
I had to do the numbers:
Just from the playoffs:
ACC: 4 million
Big10: 38 million
Big12: 8 million
MW: 4 milliion
SEC: 22 million
Plus the other bowl games they get income from. I don’t know how conference distribution of bowl money goes, but ND doesn’t receive it’s payout in a vacuum from the rest of college football.
Also last thought: ND’s independence is a threat to conferences, can you imagine if Alabama, Texas, Ohio St, or another cornerstone school of one of the conferences decided to go the independent route? Realignment has destroyed conferences, juggernaut schools going independent would destroy conference models.
I’m pretty sure that total number is divided equally among the teams (at least besides the ACC).
So the 18 teams in the Big10 each get 2.1 million.
And the SEC’s 16 teams each get 1.375 million.
So that’s why the 20 million for ND is a big deal. But what exactly it means would be better seen in the larger context of tv deals, etc.
Why do you think the athletic department doesn’t keep the whole $20 mil?
Ohio st doesn’t receive the whole portion. It basically goes to the conference and is divided by all the members.
I’m not sure the point would be that the 20 mil puts us above SEC/BIG10 teams overall but that it goes a long way to putting us near the top or keeping us competitive given our TV deal is not quite as sweet (i don’t recall all the numbers though). My guess is we wouldn’t have to do this every year for that to be the case.