JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat | Feb. 4, 2026

Notre Dame Football Live Chat | Feb. 4, 2026

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Eric Hansen

1:31

I have a call out on that, but I don't know that I'll be able to answer that before the live part is over. I can include it in the transcript if I get an update. How the co-defensive coordinator label works is not universal. Sometimes it's purely ceremonial and a way to give someone a pay bump and/or ego boost. Sometimes, like when Chris Ash was co-defensive coordinator at Ohio State, it's quite functional and meaningful. Given that Aaron Henry was a DC at Illinois, it makes sense to give him a tittle. Either way I'd expect collaboration from all the position coaches. That's a strong X's and O's group.

Tom in Evanston

1:28

Hi Eric. Is the new DB coach also the co-DC? The reporting has been inconsistent. Also, do these "co-" titles mean anything?

Eric Hansen

1:28

I think during the Weis and Brian Kelly regimes, there was an advantage, Marcus Freeman does not see it that way, and I think is more open to June enrollees being on equal footing. And ND has had plenty of standouts as freshmen who were June enrollees, like Benjamin Morrison and Leonard Moore. Now sometimes it's about positions. I think an offensive lineman like Will Black would have benefited from being a January enrollee last year.

1:21

Mark, glad you thawed out. We get a lot more of that icky winter stuff than you do, but they've invested up here in helping us navigate it fairly seamlessly, so it feels like normal. Unless you wear shorts! Really interesting questions here. How much Notre Dame has encouraged early enrolling has very much evolved over the years. Charlie Weis is actually the one who got admissions to roll the dice with Chris Stewart, George West and James Aldridge in 2006. It went well enough to give it another whirl in 20087 with three more. Now you have a record 25 (out of 3) in school for spring semester. So, yes it's very much encouraged for a number of reasons, including some academic ones. In terms of whether those players coming to ND in January have an edge over players coming in June ... (more)

Mark - Memphis, TN

1:14

Hi Eric!!!!!!!! 🥶🥶🥶🥶 The ice is finally starting to melt in the 901! I notice that almost all of the Irish signees have enrolled in January, so my questions are these: 1) How much do coaches encourage early entry by their recruits? 2) Are players from high schools with more stringent graduation requirements (e.g., 4 years of English or Math or 4 years of Religion at Catholic schools) at a disadvantage in recruitment because they can’t enroll early? As always, thanks for all you do in allowing us this forum!

Eric Hansen

1:13

Purdue coach Barry Odom claimed Porath transferred to Notre Dame without ever actually entering the portal. I believe we're going to get a chance to talk to Porath before spring, so it'll be interesting to get his perspective. But it is my understanding the player contracts run season to season, not school year to school year. So I don't think players would be able to switch schools after the spring semester, but I will double check that.

1:10

Hi Jim. Thanks for your question. And with all the kickers ND is involved with these days, it's tough to keep the names straight. Micah Drescher is a high school kicker who originally signed with Michigan, who ended up signing with Notre Dame today. He was able to get out of his Michigan commitment without complication due to Michigan's head coaching change. Spencer Porath is the kicker you are asking about. (more)

Jim from Springfield, IL

1:03

Thanks for doing this,I always learn a lot from reading the transcript. Micah Drescher finished his fall semester at Purdue and enrolled at ND for his spring semester, completing a change in schools just like tens of thousands of other college students. He participated in football at his old school and presumably will do the same at his new school. I am confident that ND has confirmed his eligibility to play this spring. What prevents him, or any other athlete, from doing the same thing at the end of spring semester, transfer portal or no transfer portal? Are players now required to sign multi-semester contracts?

Eric Hansen

1:02

2) I think Notre Dame as the 10 seed would have matched up well against those teams on that side of the bracket and also would have had a good chance to have reached the final. As the 9 seed and having to play Indiana earlier in the CFP, not sure how that would have gone. Indiana turned out to be really, really good and very complete. I can't say with certainty Notre Dame would have taken the Hoosiers down, but I would have loved to have covered that game and found out.

12:59

Very cool. All I have is piles of snow in front of my house. Nothing like that. To your questions ... 1) Last year ND replaced a coordinator (Al Golden > Chris Ash) and a running backs coach (Deland McCullough > Ja'Juan Seider). And while you're replacing three defensive assistants this offseason, you're still keeping the same system in place. And two of those three have deep connection and familiarity with Chris Ash in Aaron Henry and Charlie Partridge. Don, I think having both coordinators AND your starting QB returning — for the first time since Ian Book — is a huge plus going into the 2026 season. (more)

12:55

Don From LA

Oops -- my questions: 1. how do you compare last year's coaching turnover to this year's? Game time readiness and recruiting. 2. I think ND would have gone very deep (again) into this year's playoff and had the secondary to neutralize Indiana's passing game and would have run it on them. Different team than the one that lost by 3 in Miami. Agree or disagree?

12:53

Saw photos of the outdoor mass at the snow sculpture at ND! Hope you got warm slippers for xmas!!!! 83 here today, sorry.

Eric Hansen

12:53

The Beave. Barry from Napa has a thread in the queue that offers similar concerns. I am open to discussion, but if I need to be honest with you. If it's humanly possible to have more than platonic love for a kitchen appliance, I think it has happened with me and my Keurig machine. And I get quality pods, so I feel like I'm getting quality coffee. I like the fact that I can make one cup at a time. And I just realized I'm boring 90 percent of you to tears, so back to football!

The Beave. Grand Rapids

12:49

Eric: We here in the great white North are worried about your Keurig connection. You seem to be a connoisseur of fine things —at least in the foodie world. Are there contractual restrictions that tie you to the Keurig? Or can we move you to upgraded coffee? We are willing to help with the transition.

Eric Hansen

12:48

Nothing to me that has happened has derailed or even mitigated the chances of the 2026 team from having an opportunity at a very memorable season. ... Now to you question. If/when we get a chance to talk to Loren Landow (and it's been a couple of years, it seems), I will get more detail. But I do know one of the things Freeman and the players like is how position-specific the offseason training under him is. So yes, the O-linemen very much benefit from those kinds of drills.

12:46

Hi Tom. I probably process things differently, because I haven't viewed recent events as upheaval. Now getting left out of the CFP, yes upheaval and the Marcus Freeman/NFL question, kind of upheaval. But the other stuff has kind of been business as usual for a successful college football team, and Marcus Freeman has such a good track record of handling those kinds of challenges and turning them into positives. (more)

Tom F, Kennesaw, GA

12:38

Hey Eric, did you ever anticipate this much upheaval heading into the offseason??? ND has been successful recruiting TEs and developing them into really good OT, which is why I am excited about an underrated Charlie Thom. I think the footwork that these players developed while playing TE is a reason they become such good OT. How much off-season agility work do the Strength coaches put the OL thru in order to make them more versatile and impactful??? Seems this would be important for pass blocking at OT and run pulling at IOL. Thanks for all your help in making us Chatters more informed fans. Go Irish!!!!

Eric Hansen

12:38

And before he did that three-part series for blueandgold.com, I shared with him my experience about doing the article on my dad and it helped him make the decision on if and how he wanted to go about telling hos story.

12:36

It was a story about my dad, who had died three months earlier and his long battle with clinical depression. And writing that and putting us both out there was one of the scariest things I've ever done in my life. And the stacks of mail from that story (email was just getting going then) kept coming for months. Like hundreds of letters. And then what's really cool is that former offensive lineman Trevor Ruhland 26 years later shared a very personal story about his own, different struggles that helped so many people (more).

12:33

Happy Chat day to you, Ed. I would have to think about it, because I don't archive that kind of thing naturally. And I think you mean actual columns when you use the term "columns." Some people refer to anything I write as a column. I will try to give you an answer next week after giving it some thought. But what I can offer is a non-sports story/column I did way back on Father's Day in 1999. It was memorable because of the impact it had on people that I didn't see coming. (more)

Ed from Sayville

12:28

Happy Chat day Eric. Is there a specific column that you have written while covering the Irish that gives you the most personal and professional satisfaction? I find your work to be well balanced and level headed. In current times it’s sometimes difficult to believe how judgmental scribes can be. You may have to think about this one, but just wanted to ask. Thanks.

Eric Hansen

12:26

When I've spoken to players who have experienced multiple position coaches in their career, in general, they say the harder transition is a new coordinator. Some actually felt the position coach changed help them in the long run, just learning how to process things in a different way. At time point, I'm going to have to try to find the last season when there were zero staff changes at ND in an offseason. Off the top of my head, it certainly wasn't in the Freeman or Kelly Eras,

12:24

Hi Matt, it's funny having been in the business so long that the rhythm of my weeks is so unconventional that I never think of Wednesday as the hump. But hope yours is going great. I do think it's hard on players who form relationships with their position coaches, and yet I think most players go into it knowing how short a shelf life is for a position coach, especially those with talent and ambition. Six years for Mike Mickens was a long stretch. (more)

Michael from Austin

12:21

Howdy hump day! What is the temperature in the locker room with the coaching changes? I feel bad for the LB to go through the emotional roller coaster of Max to Al to Nick not coming home to where we are today. And I would think some of the DBs, especially the transfers and incoming FR, were blindside by this unless there was transparency that Mickens was interviewing. "The Times They Are A-Changin'"!

Eric Hansen

12:21

Ok to Jack ... Thank you. I have written two books and ghost written a third and have turned down some other offers. None of those were or would have been about me. I think they have something called Zzz-quil that would have the same effect. I appreciate the thought, but if I did another one -- and I don't see that anytime soon -- I'd want to do something about someone other than me and my experiences. But happy to share those over beers.

12:18

Jack, Strongsville, Oh12:09Hi Eric. Great article about Brian Kelly. Since you have been around awhile have you considered writing a book about your time covering ND football?

12:17

One thing that is a big selling point for the ACC's is that league's willingness to schedule games with Notre Dame in November. In fact, all four Irish games this November are against ACC competition, and two of those teams are consensus way-too-early Top 25 teams, which is what you want -- strong games in November that raise your College Football Playoff profile. One final point, ND still would need a legal avenue to leave the ACC and it might be very expensive or improbable before 2036.

12:13

Barry, we'll get to your non-bonus question later, but I thought this was a great place to start. There have been a couple of articles recently in which Jim Phillips has painted the ACC-ND relationship as mended, strong, in a better place, etc. I think that's a start. I'll feel that there's substance to it when I see actual actions to match. But I think the intention is real. ... As for forming some kind of working relationship with another conference, say the Big 10 or SEC, i think it's smart for Notre Dame athletic direction Pete Bevacqua to explore that. (more)

12:10

No I haven't been drinking, but maybe I should be,

12:09

Man I fumbled right out of the chute. Let's start with Barry's question and then Jack.

Barry from Napa CA

12:09

sorry, got truncated…you among the most connected, report that mended relationship. Is Phillips correct or are there still lingering issues? Saw some other prognosticators say ND could leave the ACC and have a similar consortium with B1G/SEC, though they were labeled out of the box ideas for 2026. What say you? Thanks again for all the stellar reporting, making the ND fan base probably the most informed in the FBS.

Jack, Strongsville, Oh

12:09

Hi Eric. Great article about Brian Kelly. Since you have been around awhile have you considered writing a book about your time covering ND football?

Barry from Napa CA

12:09

Bonus round question :)! Jim Phillips says the ACC-ND relationship is “very good” and issues were put to bed quickly after the CFP announcements. I haven’t seen any ND beat writer, you among the most

Eric Hansen

12:07

Off we go ...

The only ones that will be strictly enforced today are no spitting and no bare feet.

Here are the rules.

12:06