JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat Dec. 18, 2024

Notre Dame Football Live Chat Dec. 18, 2024

Eric Hansen

3:54

OK that's going to do it for today. Thanks for accommodating the schedule change. Thanks for all the great questions. And the chats will continue. HOWEVER, next Wednesday is Christmas. So let's pencil in Thursday, Dec. 26 at noon ET and once I know what my schedule looks like we'll confirm it at insideNDsports.com and by Twitter, Facebook and Blue Sky accounts. Happy Holidays/Frostbite prevention.

3:51

Patrick! Email me your address and I'll do that and send you a (wicked) bonus.

Patrick (Boston MA)

3:51

Glad to make your day. I’d settle for a signed photo of yourself wearing said white sunglasses in the mail.

Eric Hansen

3:50

OK, I will put you down for that, but Marcus Freeman left it to a vote of the captains.

Bill from St Joe, MI

3:50

Eric re uniforms: with the exception of all white road uniforms on very rare occasions, and very occasional green jerseys, but never green pants, count me as one always in favor of gold pants and blue jerseys! TRADITION!!!

Eric Hansen

3:50

and pizza. So, that's what we had. And I had onion rings for my side.

3:49

Francis ... I'm loving your emoji game. My is super lame, so I am envious. And thank you and Merry Christmas. I don't think losing the turnover battle by one guarantees a loss, but it does cut into your margin for error in other facets of the game. And when you are playing the best team you've played all year ... and will continue to if you win ... turnovers, penalties, special teams play all get magnified. ... Unless the wind really kicks up, I don't think it will be a MAJOR detriment to either passing game, but ND is the better running team and IU the better run defense. ... It won't be below zero, so we won't have to do the calculus on the cleats. ... Wow, that was a clever way to ask about the unis. I love it. ... Favorite Xmas side dish. Not sure what we're having this year. We usually have kind of something similar to Thanksgiving fare one night and Italian on Xmas Eve, but we have a new chef this year. And when I did Xmas with the grandkids this past weekend, they requested a menu or pub burgers (more)

Francis Carideo, Chicago

3:42

Hi Eric -- thanks for doing these chats, and Merry Christmas!!

If Notre Dame loses the turnover battle by even one turnover, do you see Notre Dame beating Indiana?

Also, while there are a couple suspect Indiana secondary members back there, do you think the weather will be enough to neutralize ND attempts to pick on those folks, especially given Leonard's lack of proficiency with the longer ball?

Relatedly, does ND wear different cleats when it's below zero

, and while you're not into cosmetics like uniforms, nevertheless have you heard (*dependable*) chit chat from folks typically in the know, indicating we'll see some sort of flea flicker in that regard

? Finally, what's your favorite Christmas meal SIDE dish?

God bless..............

Eric Hansen

3:42

I'd be willing to defer and take the ball to start the second half.

Jeff from sunny Phoenix

3:41

Eric! Had to jump in with a rapid fire; if ND wins the toss, should they go offense or defense? I say D

Eric Hansen

3:41

Cool, thanks.

Mike McFadden, Williamsport, PA

3:41

Eric, you answered it. Mike McF. Reading script now. Thanks.

Eric Hansen

3:40

I do feel Marcus is here for the long term, which is why he agreed to the extension.

Steve Toledo Ohio

3:40

Hi Eric, its my understanding Marcus s new contract has no escape clause for say Ohio State should Ryan Day be let go Monday morning. Do you feel Marcus is here long term? Another report was the Chicago Bears last week.

Eric Hansen

3:40

As I mentioned earlier, there will be special jerseys on Friday night and there have been lots of hints dropped they will be black jerseys. As for me, I will pick out something that's not too wrinkled and doesn't have any spaghetti sauce stains on it.

michael k costa mesa calif. Can you please tell

3:38

Can you please address the rumor about the team wearing BLACK UNIFORMS FRI NIGHT ? .Thank You & Merry Christmas

Eric Hansen

3:38

Thanks for the vote of confidence, but my crystal ball is in the shop, so what is the question you are confident I can answer?

Guest

3:37

Hi Mr Eric, I cannot find answer for this question but I know you can answer Eric, and thanks.

Eric Hansen

3:37

To both Matt and Jim, I've kind of answered both of those, but with those compliments and Christmas greetings, I wanted a chance to reciprocate, so thanks for being part of the chat and Happy Holidays to you both AND thanks for not charging me for the positive PR!

Jim, Oakwood, Oh

3:36

Eric, Wishing you and your family a very Merry and Joy filled Christmas! Thank you for your excellent reporting all year about ND football and for the insightful and nuanced opinions you share in each Chat. All good! What is one important way for ND to attack what IU does best on defense and with its offense - the keys to the game on each side of the ball?

Matt from Austin

3:36

Hi Eric and a very Merry Christmas to you and your entire family! Great extension with Coach Freeman! Do you know where we stand with potential extensions to Coaches Golden and Denbrock? Secondly, most of us have not seen much of IU I would assume. I know their defense is highly rated, albeit against lesser foes. Give us three match ups that ND will have to win for us to prevail! I know that I mention this each week, but thank you so much for your kindness, insights, and thoughtfulness! A lot of !!!!. Sorry. Be well Eric.

Eric Hansen

3:35

Hi Doug. By rule they can't host recruits unless they buy their own tickets.

Doug from Sunny Florida

3:35

Eric, will ND be hosting recruits for the playoff game? This would be an incredible game to host some top recruits if allowed!

Eric Hansen

3:34

Love was in a brace and not in a boot. And he was participating in drills and came up for interviews without taking the elevator and I think ND feels good about having him at or near 100%. But let's say that is not the case and play the hypothetical. Then I think the bulk of the carries go to Jadarian Price and Aneyas Williams. And I would not rule out Kedren Young maybe having a role in that scenario, a situational role.

Sean, Schaumburg, IL

3:31

If Love can't go, if I remember correctly on FNS he was in some sort of boot/cast, who becomes the second option behind Price in the RB rotation? Isn't a 100% RB option better than a diminished Love?

Eric Hansen

3:30

Hi Brendan, if I didn't think some of IU's numbers were skewed by their schedule, I might be tempted to say yes, But for me, the three worst would be Ohio State, Tennessee and Oregon and all in the other part of the bracket. Penn State and the way its playing looks on paper to be another, but I'm not sure about the Nittany Lions.

Brendan from Pittsburgh

3:26

Is Indiana (particularly their defense) the worst possible first round matchup given the options available? Not excited to go against the #1 run defense and a defense that played really well against Ohio St. given what IU's offense and special teams did in that game.

Eric Hansen

3:25

Most likely not just with talent but OPPORTUNITY ... CBs Golden and Zackery, S Blair, LB Faraimo, WR Burress, DE Burgess, TE Flanigan. Check back with me in January. I'll have a better list.

3:22

Ced, you threw me a big curveball during playoff week. Not even on my radar, so let me do a quick calculation. And we don't yet know all who's coming via transfer... so doubly hard. When you say PLAY, I am not talking four games/redshirt playing or special teams only ... so here goes ...

cederickwalker

3:21

ced walker saginaw michigan aka sagnasty Saginaw pride how many freshmen do u see playing next year 2025 season prediction for the game Friday night nd 24 ind 17 god bless this football team here come the irish trust the process the golden standard rally we are nd god country go irish love thee notre dame our mother pray for us

Eric Hansen

3:21

Kevin I tried to splice your questions together into one mega-question. At least as I formulate my answer. Marcus Freeman brought up a good point in his Zoom. It's not just about watching what IU does on film, it's anticipating what IU might attack thinking you don't do that well. So, with the extra prep time, Rourke, who ran for roughly 800 yards and 11 TDs during his last three seasons at Ohio, could be used that way. But you said it yourself, ND needs to mix it up on defense. Not give them a same consistent look all night. What is really intriguing to me is how ND defends IU's run and tries to get them in third and long. Golden doesn't often put an extra safety in the box. But to your prediction-like question, if ND has five+ sacks and zero turnovers, I'd feel pretty good about you having a fun ride home (or celebration wherever you're watching from).

Kevin-Sleepy Eye,MN

3:13

Eric:):):) Lets talk defense. Rourke has -25yd rushing on the season. No one seems to talk much about that stat. That appears easier to defend. We could mix rushing 3 and dropping 8 with our "bringing the house" blitz packages. Extending plays with he feet must rarely happen. I feel we should have 5+ sacks Friday and if our offense has no turnovers then we should win. How much will Rourke's mobility hurt Indiana Friday night? Go Irish!!

3:12

Eric:):):):) Lets talk defense. I feel our passing and rushing rankings are a bit skewed due to playing Army & Navy...especially our pass defense when we all watched what USC did. Then I heard Al Golden talk about how he failed to mix up coverages against USC and really blamed himself for a lot of what went wrong against USC. So now we have Indiana with a QB who has -25yd rushing on the season; should be easier to defend I feel. Will we drop 8 and rush 3? He's not a running threat. Can we pressure him all night long? Can we force multiple turnovers? Can we keep them under 100yd rushing on the night. If our defense dominates and offense doesn't turn ball over we will win Friday I feel.

Eric Hansen

3:12

Hi David, and thank you! I haven't followed the Deuce Knight situation very closely since he decommitted. And the numbers still favor him there. I believe Auburn doesn't have any QBs back between expired eligibility and the outgoing transfer portal. But besides Arnold, Stanford's Ashton Daniels is headed there as well. So that still feels like a path of less resistance. As far as the calendar, I think moving the signing period up to before the portal opened helps. I'm not sure I can fix the other challenges with the calendar given that school redstart in January and a lot of kids want to be settled into their new schools for spring semester. I will give it some more thought, but if I do come up with a brilliant answer, I want some NIL money of my own.

David - NY

3:04

Hi Eric - Thanks as always for the chats!

I saw Jackson Arnold committed to Auburn in the transfer portal. I know Deuce also got a nice NIL package, but my understanding was the real tiebreaker was ultimately path to playing time. Am I right in this? If so, I wonder how honest the Auburn staff was with him that they'd be looking in the portal. And more broadly, what do you think of the calendar in college football right now? Season ends, coach movement, early signing period, portal, playoff, late signing period, spring ball and spring transfer window. I get why coaches are complaining. What's your ideal calendar look like?

Eric Hansen

3:04

Bill, come find me. I want to walk with you to the stadium LOL. It says 15 minutes on Google Maps. It doesn't feel like that long. I enjoy the exercise and will Friday night. Now for some of the women's basketball games, I am glad I park closer Brrrrr.

Bill from St Joe, MI

sieze

3:00

Eric, how long of a walk is it from your parking spot to the front door of Corbett Family Hall on this chilly Friday afternoon and night? I bought a lithium powered vest from Costco earlier in the week to keep me warm, but I’m not sure I’ll make it thru the detectors. My backup is several airline size bottles of bourbon, which they also might seezze

Eric Hansen

2:59

Hi Mark. This week does have my days messed up, but can't wait. .. Kurtis Rourke netted minus-25 yards this season, but he ran much better and more often during his time at Ohio University (3.3 ypc in the last season there). And he certainly has the size to run (6-5, 223) in short-yardage. .. .Can the D-line get pressure? IU O-line was a Joe Moore Award semifinalist (one of 10), just like ND was. But they gave up more sacks. ND is 24th in sacks allowed, IU 45th. Howard Cross and how he plays is a HUGE factor in answering your question about rushing four and getting pressure. If he's in true Howard Cross form, that bodes well for ND. If the Irish win the game, a stab at the Crystal Balls would be Riley Leonard and Howard Cross.

Guest

2:45

Mark Czar Grand Rapids Michigan>>> I cannot wait till Friday! The excitement in South Bend must be electric. Is QB Rourke a threat to run? How well has the O line protected him? Can the D line get pressure rushing 4? Warm up your crystal ball - who are your pre game picks for game balls?

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