JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat | Nov. 12, 2025

Notre Dame Football Live Chat | Nov. 12, 2025

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Eric Hansen

3:22

OK, I am out of time with a bunch of assignments stacked up and mocking me. So thanks for all the great questions. We'll be back next Wednesday at noon ET to do it all over again.

3:21

Oh I missed your last couple of questions. I don't get the sense that Narduzzi is under pressure at Pitt. ... and as far as his defensive philosophy? It's actually worked pretty well for him against most opponents. Not everyone, but most.

3:20

Hi Matt!!!!!!! Thank you for chatting and for watching and I will pass along your congrats to Tyler. This is kind of a phone-a-friend question, so if I get a better answer next time I talk to Mike Singer, I'll pass it along next week. But my thought is, this is a guy Notre Dame feels can help them down the road. And consider too that injured freshman safety Brandon Logan may lean into baseball eventually way more than football.

Matt from Muscatine

3:17

Hi Eric!!! Thank you for doing these chats. I enjoyed Football Never Sleeps, and congratulations to Tyler on his engagement!!! <3 Do you know if he finally caved and is walking down the aisle with the ACC or did he jilt them for the Big 10? Jokes aside, please pass along my favorite wedding toast: “May every day of your marriage be happier than the one before.” Regarding football, is Matt Sieg more of a “let’s see if we can get another great player since Penn State is struggling and fired their coach” or a “we really need this dude” kind of recruit? Also, Pat Narduzzi has had some struggles at Pitt. Is Pitt okay with generally being good but not great? Given how other universities have been participating in the coaching carousel, it actually strikes me as kind of refreshing. Lastly, regarding Narduzzi’s defensive philosophy, I understand wanting to and even prioritizing stopping the run, but wouldn’t it probably work out better to be slightly less aggressive against the run to balance defending the pass?

Eric Hansen

3:17

Hi Mike. I think it's authenticity to be concise and precise. Kids want to be around people they can trust, people they think are genuine, and people who care about them beyond what they can do from those coaches on the football field.

Mike

3:16

SB native now living in Macon, NC. Look forward to your chat each week. Question: We hear the word “culture” so often in recruiting and many recruits rank ND high when mentioning “family feel”. What is Coach Freeman and staff doing that makes culture such a vital element that attracts these top five recruiting classes?

Eric Hansen

3:15

Bob!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for watching us on The Notre Dame Football Show last night on YouTube. Landon is a blast to watch film with, so thank you. The biggest problem with the scenario you laid out is that ND does not have an opening for a defensive coordinator. But I get where you're coming from. Al Golden as a great fit.

bob gorman oak park, il

3:13

Eric!!!!!!!!!!! Have you heard when '26 schedule might be finalized? Given the challenges that the Bengals are experiencing, perhaps Al Golden might be available after the season. Do you have any idea if Coach Free would bring him back? Or is the mix of zone and man that Ash plays closer to Freeman's approach as a DC? What would you do? Landon's analysis of the line play, Love and Carr was outstanding on last night's podcast. Thanks for all that you do and your professionalism.

Eric Hansen

3:13

Hi Josh, and thank you! One reason ND could lose is if they get into a negative turnover differential, as they did early in the year. They're currently fourth nationally in turnover margin, the Irish are. What's one reason to feel more confident: CJ Carr was built for a game like this.

Josh from NYC

3:11

Hi Eric, thanks as always for these chats. Highlight of the week (other than Saturdays). This feels like the kind of game ND has lost over the past few decades and Pitt seem to be strong in all the places ND may be vulnerable. What’s one reason I should feel more confident? And what’s one reason you think ND could lose this weekend?

Eric Hansen

3:10

Hi DB. I know Ja'Juan is open to rotating as many as four backs if it makes sense to him, but he is not as committed to forcing the issue as his predecessor, Deland McCullough, was. I think Aneyas is really, really good and he'll be in the mix to be the No. 1 back next year if Jadarian Price isn't lured into staying. Even then, he'd play a lot.

DB in DC

3:09

Hi Eric, I was impressed with Aneyas Williams' play last Sat against Navy and he made some big plays in the CFP last year. Do you have any insight as to why he hasn't played nearly as much this year? Does Seider not like to rotate three backs? I think he adds yet another element to a talented RB room. Thanks!

Eric Hansen

3:09

Hi Lorne. If there's a question tucked in there, you either answered it yourself or I missed it.

Lorne

3:08

Hello, Eric, and thanks as always for the chats. The common football philosophy is that you run to open up the pass, but every coach in the country whose name doesn't rhyme with "Rincoln Liley" know the book on defending ND is to load up on the run and take your chances with CJ. It seems to me that ND should be doing the opposite: throw to open up the run. Yes, you need to be able to run even when the defense is looking for it, but if the defense is giving you easy passes, why not take them? Charlie Weis practically lost it at half-time of a BYU game when asked if they needed to run more in the second half after Quinn had thrown for a ton of yardage in the first half. His answer (I agree) was that if they are going to load the box and play Samardzija and Stovall one-on-one and 10 yards off the line, he'll throw to them every play.

Eric Hansen

3:08

Hey The Beave. His dad was deputy AD when Jaiden was recruited, so I don't know why there would be a greater allure now. The family was supportive of his decision to come to ND. I should not that his brother, Austin, did play a couple of years at Auburn before transferring to LSU, but I don't get that read from Jaiden that he's unhappy and looking around.

The Beave (Grand Rapids)

3:06

Hi Eric. Great game from Jaiden Ausberry Saturday. He doesn’t get a whole lot of attention but has really developed this year. His dad is now the LSU AD, right? That would seem to bring a lot of FAM-IL-LEE pressure in the off season to attempt to lure #4 into the portal? Any intel as to how/why ND got him out of Louisiana when he signed and whether there is worry about him leaving ND to help out dad and be an every down linebacker in the bayou now that BK is out of the picture?

Eric Hansen

3:06

Hi Mark!! Pitt has a good group of receivers and when Desmond Reid is healthy a good group of running backs. Pitt is not a good running team, however. They are imbalanced to the pass in the way they play offense and where they have the most success. ND has seen better individuals at those positions. Arkansas is much better, for instance, offensively. But they have a knack for overcoming their flaws to this point on offense and they pair that offense with a defense that can cause some problems. I mentioned their special teams are outstanding.

Mark from Boston

3:02

hi Eric!! I have an uneasy feeling with regard to this week’s game. The change of QB seems to have galvanized the Panthers. Will ND be able to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball? Does Pitt have a breakaway RB or difference maker at WR?

Eric Hansen

3:02

Hi Fred and thanks for the great hype for me! I think the advantage Notre Dame has is the confidence of playing in difficult venues against tough matchups and being able to bring their best in those games with the glaring spotlights and high stakes. I think Pitt's advantage is they also have a lot to play for. it's at home and their offense is very different than Navy's. I have to make my score predictions a week in advance, and I've only amended that one time this season during game week. So I'm going to stick with Notre Dame 34, Pitt 17.

Fred from Richmond

2:57

Eric, always a pleasure to view your insight to everything about Notre Dame football. I believe that the Irish will be motivated by the playoff possibilities and win convincingly against Pitt. Maybe I'm viewing this as a lifelong ND fan, but I believe the Irish have an advantage mentally by advancing to the Championship game last year. Beating Georgia in Atlanta with a decidedly home field advantage gives them confidence that they can go into a hostile environment and excel. How do you see this game playing out? As always GO IRISH dominate the line of scrimmage and beat up Pitt!!!!!!!!!!!!

Eric Hansen

2:57

Hi Len!!!! The committee does look at the things you discussed and does put those numbers in context. They have so much available to them to evaluate and more time to do so than most of the people who are whining about what they're doing.

Len from the Jersey Shore

2:55

Hello Eric!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for hosting. Your summary of key stats; RO, RD etc. has always been intriguing and a good metric. I dug in deeper after watching Oregon vs. Iowa and, to my eye watching the plays, the Oregon defense was not stingy against the pass as the number 1 PE defense would say. I thought ND’s pass defense looked better to the eye. For the Oregon schedule here are the following offensive pass efficiency rankings they have played; Iowa 121, Wisconsin 130, Rutgers 49, Indiana 2, Penn St. 92, Oregon St. 120, Northwestern 118, Oklahoma St. 129 and FCS Montana St. ND has played much better passing teams than Oregon and is 24th in Team Defense Pass Efficiency. Is it possible ND’s pass defense might be better than Oregon’s? More importantly is there something in the CFP’s committee review to incorporate in any key statistical rankings the statistical rankings of teams you play? Like maybe Strength of Record?

Eric Hansen

2:55

Hey Ed. Notre Dame was content with starting the season with a four-man linebacker rotation, and Madden Faraimo forced the issue and made it five with his early special teams play and consistency in practices. So he made his linebacker debut against Purdue in game 3 on the Sept. 20. His 29 snaps against Navy last Saturday are a career high. But some of that was tied to his extraordinary production and some was a product of Notre Dame playing three linebackers at a time virtually the whole game. Usually it's two linebackers at a time in the base defense. So he's earned the trust of the coaches, but if you see his snaps go down on Saturday, it's because of a numbers game and not a loss of trust.

Ed, Sayville NY

2:42

Well hello again Eric. I hope you are enjoying the week. I was somewhat surprised and pleased to see how much Madden Faraimo played during the Navy game. A true freshman facing a style known to confound more experienced players says something about his progress. In your opinion, would it be a reach to think number 19 will earn additional opportunities during the remainder of this season?

Eric Hansen

2:41

Jeff, I love that take. Well-played.

Jeff Zielinski Berea Oh

2:41

Does Pitt have any monsters under the bed, or are all the monsters standing on the Notre Dame sidelines?

Eric Hansen

2:41

Irishdowski, you made the right call on going to your mom's party Happy Birthday to her. I do think what you laid out is a big key in this game. And one the 10th-game-starting version of CJ Carr and the O-line should handle better than how they might have fared in August/September against the same setup. I also think how Pitt handles ND's defensive pressures is huge.

Guest

Irishdowski from Pittsburgh again sorry I hit the return button before I finished a rookie mistake. Thinking that you might have asked if I was going to the game and sadly I must say NNNNOOOO, because I was talked into hosting my moms 86 birthday party. Sorry about no exclamation's. Go Irish

2:39

Irishdowski from Pittsburgh first time contributor a long time listener, in fact I was at the game when the Irish knocked off then #1 Pitt at Pitt Stadium versus a Dan Marino led Pitt. My biggest concern about this game game is how the Irish handle Pitts blitz package where they rush six and play three deep with the two under players reading the quarterbacks eyes. Pitt blitzes from all eight under positions so one never knows where the blitz is coming from and who is dropping. Would you agree that this is the most key matchup?

Eric Hansen

2:38

2) Whevever there's the best matchup, and remember Pitt will blitz a lot, so Carr may want to get it out quick to Faison, Pauling or Love or even Eli Raridon over the middle where the blitzing linebacker just vacated. My sense is Faison will have some favorable matchups. 3) Marcus Freeman seems confident they've found a way to prepare him that agrees with his growing confidence. Thanks, Tom.

2:36

Monsters under the bed indeed! 1) Denbrock as ND's offensive play-caller in 2015 shredded Pitt in 2015, in Narduzzi's first year as the Panthers head coach. Will Fuller had a field day with single coverage and ND won 42-30 in a game that was 42-17 with under 5 minutes left. Ash and Narduzzi's teams faced each other the year before, 2014, when Ohio State played Michigan State. But they didn't face each other. Both were DCs and it wasn't a good day for either one. The Buckeyes prevailed, though, 49-37. (more)

Tom F, Kennesaw, GA

2:27

OK Eric, so your preseason trap game as now turned into a "monster under the bed" game for the Irish....1) Have Denbrock or Ash ever faced a Narduzzi coached team? 2) If Pitt loads the box and plays the Narduzzi press D, who does Carr look to: Fields and his size or Faison and his quickness? 3) The thing that I liked most about Schmidt's performance was that all but one PT was down the middle and only one kickoff also was not right down the middle. Hopefully they figured out something. Look forward to your answers. Go Irish!!!!!!!

Eric Hansen

It's not a long list when it comes to urgent corrections.

2:26

Hi Jack! My first impressions of CJ Carr came in an interview I did with him in January of 2023, so after his high school junior season. And it really gave me great insight into how grounded his was, how mature he was and he hard-wired he was to funnel life experiences, including losing a brother to a brain tumor, into strength and drive. And then the physical part, when I saw these glimpses in practice of throws I didn't see other ND QBs making, and his decision-making. And the one thing I wasn't sure about was how he'd process things at the line of scrimmage. And then in interviews with Mike Denbrock and Gino Guidugli really getting a sense of that as well. And I think the rate in which that's evolved over the season might have even surprised them a little bit. What does he need work on? Continuing to get better at all the things he's good at now and some he's not. He could be a more effective runner, for instance. He needs to know when taking a sack is a win. Those kinds of things. (more)

Jack, Strongsville, Oh

2:18

Hi Eric. You were very high on CJ Carr prior to the season. What did you see in him that gave you such confidence in his ability? What areas does he need to improve in for the rest of the season and next year? Thanks as always for your great work.

Eric Hansen

2:17

HI Matt. Thanks, happy I have a working furnace and functional gloves! And if you'd like my thoughts on Brian Kelly (re his time at Notre Dame and not the lawsuit he's messing with), you're in luck. I wrote a column about that: The rise, the fall, and the reframing of Brian Kelly’s Notre Dame story ... and thanks for the compliments. And I can't think of any questions I wished someone had asked and didn't. You all do such a great job of coming up with great ones each week. And I'm serious about that. You look at questions in just about any other forum, and it's not even close the level of thought you all put into it. If there are questions/ideas no one asks me about and I think are valuable to readers, I'll just write a column about it. Thanks for asking.

Matt from Austin

2:11

Hi Eric. I hope you're staying warm. Like a lot of readers I suppose, I'm interested in your thoughts on the Brian Kelly fiasco. But my actual question is this... Each week you answer our questions with thoughtfulness, insight, and humor. During the season to date, have there been any questions in your mind that you wish that someone would have or could have answered for you in a totally honest fashion? (And no, why does Matt from Austin participate in the chat cannot be one of them!!) Thanks Eric. Have a great week.

Eric Hansen

2:11

No. Nada. Zip. The only scenario I can see that could affect their seeding is if Oklahoma and Texas both pull upsets of Alabama and Georgia, respectively this weekend and then all four win out after that. That would be the least-favorable outcome for the Irish.

Patrick from Los Angeles

2:09

Thank you for hosting the chats, Eric. If Notre Dame wins out in impressive fashion, do you envision any scenario by which they would be left out of the CFP?

Eric Hansen

2:08

The lines of scrimmage are the key matchup on both sides of the ball. ... I don't think it's a great edge knowing what Narduzzi think defensively, because it's kind of an open book. Offensively, would be more valuable, and I'm not sure how much he influences that side of the ball or whether Bullough would know that. Thanks for your great questions!

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