JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat Nov. 6, 2024

Notre Dame Football Live Chat Nov. 6, 2024

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Eric Hansen

1:31

Hi Marie. I know that's you. I can fix that typo in the transcript, but I can't fix it live. .... I am having a pretty good week here. Two of my grandkids have birthdays this week! I have Notre Dame ranked higher than the committee does, but I can see the justification for having them at 10. Again, that's not necessarily where they will end up. But given limited common data points, I don't think 10 was unreasonable. I think 7, maybe 6 at this point is probably as high as ND could get and that would take more than a few things to align perfectly. I think 8 and a home game is very realistic. But let's see what the weekend brings. (more)

Marae from Atlanta

1:17

Hi Eric,

I hope you’re having a fantastic week. What are your thoughts on Notre Dame‘s number 10 in the first CFP rankings? Based on the current ranking, what do you think the highest ranking they can achieve is? Can you please explain to me how Penn State is number six? I know they only have one loss, but they have no top 25 wins., And although Ohio State only beat them by seven Ohio State gave them a pick six and then when they were going into score fumbled into the end zone costing Ohio State another seven. The game was not that close. Which teams in the current top 10 do you think are the worst matchups for Notre Dame? Finally onto the game, is there any position group on Florida State that might be able to give Notre Dame some trouble this weekend? A lot of rapid fire questions but still under 17.Thanks for hosting the chat and all your great insights.

Eric Hansen

1:17

Hi JB. Thanks. Tyler James put together an extensive visitors list earlier this week, with lots of big names coming in from both the 2025 and 2026 classes. And the early signing period is even earlier than it has been this cycle -- Dec. 4. So ND can put itself in position this weekend to finish strong. ... My expectation is that this team will not take its opponents for granted down the stretch, but we'll have to find out together if that's the case.

J Buckley, San Diego

1:12

Let's start with the obvious, now that the votes are in, ND lands at 10 ;) ..I think that is a fair spot, and like that there are a few BIG 10 teams ahead of us who will cannibalize themselves. What's the latest in the world of recruiting? Did we make any progress with this year's class? Also, I'm really hoping the team is up for this weeks game and the rest because they're all going to try and play spoiler..Thoughts, and thanks as always for all your insight.

Eric Hansen

1:11

I think Notre Dame needs to play with the precision and the passion that they've done so for the past month or so, with the memory of the Northern Illinois game brought up to them by Marcus Freeman every Thursday. Look, Florida State is 96th in total defense among the 133 teams the NCAA charts (the 134th is considered provisional). And that's their better side of the ball. Offensively out of 133, 132 in rush offense, 132 in total offense, 132 in scoring offense, 131 in pass efficiency, 126 in sacks allowed, 132 in third-down efficiency, 130 in turnover margin. So, as Freeman says, play to your standard.

Doug from Sunny Florida

1:07

Eric, did you ever think ND would be in a position to look beyond FSU to prepare for Army? Of course they aren't looking beyond FSU but what needs to happen for ND to win this weekend so I can retain bragging rights amongst all of these FSU fans here? Go Irish!

Eric Hansen

1:06

New athletic director Pete Bevacqua and I had this discussion last spring and I published our conversation in a three-part series. It's pretty in-depth, even that little part of it that you asked about, so I'm including the link at the end of this answer. But here's a quick quote ... and Pete was at the Nebraska game too as a fan ....

“We owe it to our fans. We owe it to Notre Dame to make sure we’re out in front of that,” Bevacqua said of tamping down visiting fans’ presence to a manageable level at Irish home games. “And I think you’ve seen those results. They're demonstrable.”

Digging into the front-burner issues that greet Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua

johngipp Lititz, PA

Sorry about the mis-send. JW stated efforts were underway to eliminate this type of occurence in the future. Do you have any knowledge of the mechanics and status of these efforts?

1:02

Hey Eric, I was at the 2000 ND Nebraska game when the red invasion occurred. The first ranking had ND away at Penn State for a first round game. If you saw any crowd shots of the PSU-OSU game, it was a sea of white save for a small splotch of red in the upper boondocks. (still in PA I believe) I wonder if an invasion of white could still occur if the home field of the playoff game were flipped. I remember JS stating efforts were underway to eliminate this occurrence

Eric Hansen

1:01

Rui, in listening to the committee chair, Warde Manuel, Tuesday night and others ... I think there's a higher bar for strength of schedule for teams with one loss or more than there is for an undefeated team with some games still left to go. Is that fair? I can see both sides. I have ND ranked ahead of Indiana, but IU has taken care of its business and has been dominant in those games. But what Manuel couldn't answer is why wouldn't BYU, with two Top 25 wins and undefeated, rank higher than Indiana. In general, all of these things seem to work themselves out over the course of the entire season.

Rui from Westchester, NY

12:56

ND and strength of schedule is something that ppl look "down" on because its weak, yet Indiana is way worse but nothing is truly said...thoughts?

Eric Hansen

12:56

We did get Max for one of the Tuesday night interview sessions recently, and I did include a lot of the quotes from his interview in my weekly greatest hits piece I do every Wednesday morning. So I will link to that in the transcript. ... I think the coaching staff will work hard to get Tae Johnson in on special teams this week and ideally at least a handful of reps at corner if the game situation dictates.

12:54

HI Mark and thank you! All the things that go into the pass-efficiency formula from a statistical standpoint. More TD passes, better completion percentage (although he has the third-highest for a single season in ND history currently), the ability to extend plays when that's called for. Highest yards per attempt/completion. What might that look like on the field? Better decisions. More Mitch Evans. Getting the field receivers involved. That would be Jordan Faison, now that he's healthy, and Kris Mitchell. That's the concise version. Just a comfort in running the offense, seeing the game through Mike Denbrock's eyes and vice versa. (more)

Guest

12:49

Mark Czar Grand Rapids Mi… Ideally what does the next step in Riley Leonard as a passer evolution look like? Max Hurleman and his journey to ND would be a story I would love to read. Is he still taking practice reps at CB? Do you expect to see Tae Johnson get game reps on Saturday? Thanks Eric -you are the best!

Eric Hansen

12:47

So what could drive ND to join a conference full time in football: It's the same three things ... if their path to compete for a national title is blocked. If their media rights deal isn't putting them in position to be competitive with the best teams. Or if the ACC blew up and there would not be a conference that would take them without full-time football. Right now none of those boxes are checked. So football independence lives on.

12:44

Hi Joe. Thanks for the question. Let me break this down in parts. I think in most years 10-2 will be enough to get ND into the playoff. And remember, a 14-team format may be coming down the road in a couple of years. This year, the rhythm of the schedule did not set up that way, not to the overall strength of schedule. Who would have thought the two highest-ranked teams going in -- Florida State and USC would be a combined 5-13 at this point of the season? But next year's schedule looks formidable now, with what we know of it. And adding Texas in 2028 and 2029, which should be official sooner than later, is another step toward keeping that schedule competitive. Even joining a mega-conference doesn't ensure schedule strength. If Ohio State blows out Indiana, the Hoosiers may be out of the playoff at 11-1, for instance, with zero Top 25 wins. (more)

Guest

12:35

Joe from Massapequa ,NY Hello Eric my good man. My question has to do with the playoffs . I am expecting ND to be ranked 9th tonite . Maybe 8th depending if Louisvillle cracks the top 25. It appears to be 11-1 or bust for the Irish. I think with the future schedules it may be very difficult to get in with 2 losses w/o a conference affiliation. At what point does this program bite the bullet and join a conference? What would it take? I have been a fan for 50 years and i am ready to join lol. I will be disgusted if I see Penn State and Indiana in with 11-1 records . What are your thoughts? Enjoy the week.

Eric Hansen

12:35

Saturday night, when I was putting together my AP poll ballot, I was trying to compare Indiana (9-0) and Penn State (7-1), both Big Ten teams. This deep into the season, they have ONE common opponent -- UCLA. Now there will be more common data points among more teams when the final rankings are issues on Dec. 8, but the eye test is still going to have to factor in significantly.

12:32

Matt, thanks for your question. And I understand the intent here, but I don't think it works for football. Here's why. With hockey, you have far fewer teams (60 vs. 134 FBS football teams). Those teams also play a lot more games, so there are more data points and more common data points as well. Last year ND played 36 games ahead of the NCAA Selection time (and the Irish were not selected). The football team plays 12. So the eye test in football is really, really a big factor and increasingly so. Because of the size of these mega-conferences, even teams in the same league don't play similar schedules. (more)

Matt, Salem, OR

12:26

Is there a chance the playoffs for football ever have a formula for selection like other playoffs? Like hockey with pairwise (though I don't think it is formal). They use head to head and common opponents , then ties are broken by voter poll. Just having that published with other polls gives a more data driven look to fans and others comparing teams. Thanks for your insight.

Eric Hansen

12:24

Hi Jeff. This is more conjecture than me poking around and trying to get confirmation. Let's do the math. You have six tight ends on the roster now, and two of them can't come back — Mitch Evans and Davis Sherwood are out of eligibility after this season. That leaves you with Kevin Bauman, Eli Raridon, Cooper Flanagan and Jack Larsen as potential returnees. Bauman has a COVID exemption year, but he may not exercise it. And even if he does, is he too physically compromised over the years to be a front-line, every-week contributor? Might one of the others transfer? As those questions played out, the thought of adding a second tight end recruit became more appealing. And it's something ND considered early in the cycle and then backed off.

Jeff from Phoenix

12:20

Hey Eric! I have a question about the 2025 TE recruiting. They took Flanigan a long time ago, and seemed good with just the 1 for this cycle. Now they have made a push to flip Olesh from Michigan. Any insight as to why they decided to add a second TE? Thanks-

Eric Hansen

12:18

How would they get a home game. Well, they're two seeds away now from that, with the committee splitting hairs. The thing they can control is win, and win impressively. Texas A&M winning out and Louisville winning out would also help their case. And if Army's only loss is to ND, that would be another nice data point. Teams ahead of ND losing games helps, provided they're not in the conference title game in some cases. That might invite a team outside the top 12 to take a top 4 spot and squeeze the number of available at-large spots. The USC score could matter if you're comparing ND and Penn State, as that would be a common opponent.

12:13

Hi Patrick. This will probably be the first of several CFP questions we get to, but I think this is a good place to start. Having participated in a teleconference Tuesday night with CFP selection committee chair Warde Manual, I heard enough about how the committee is evaluating teams, including ND, that I think an 11-1 ND team is in. They could tempt fate by winning unimpressively in November and looking like a team on the decline, but even then a lot would have to align to knock ND out of contention. (more)

Patrick from Los Angeles

12:06

Based upon USC's loss to Washington and Navy's loss to Rice, do you think there is any scenario in which an 11-1 Notre Dame team gets shut out of the CFP? Conversely, in your opinion what needs to happen for ND to secure a first round CFP home game? Thank you.

Eric Hansen

OK off we go. ...

12:06

The "no drinking" rule remains rescinded until further notice ... please don't make me regret it.

12:05

No 17-part questions. No manifestos. Minimal whining, especially coming out of a bye week.

PLEASE include your NAME and HOMETOWN along with your question(s).

As far as this week's chat ...

12:04

► Finally, we’re rolling out of the bye week at WSBT Sports Radio 96.1 and into ND’s matchup with Florida State on Saturday night. Darin Pritchett and I are together this week on Wednesday and Thursday on Weekday SportsBeat (96.1 FM, 960 AM, live streaming at wsbtradio.com). The weekday shows run from 5-6 p.m. ET. I’m also part of the Gameday SportsBeat crew, and the pregame show that runs on Saturdays before every game. This week we’ll be live from 4-6:30 p.m. ET. You can download all episodes, including the pregame shows, as podcasts.

► The Inside ND Sports Podcast will drop Thursday. Last week, Tyler James and I reached out to Pro Football Focus college football analyst Dalton Wasserman to share some knowledge. Wasserman discussed Notre Dame's season to date, what PFF's grades say about quarterback Riley Leonard's pro potential, how good running back Jeremiyah Love has been for ND, how PFF ensures for consistency in grading, what Anthony Treash can provide for Notre Dame's staff, why defensive tackles Rylie Mills and Howard Cross III have lower grades this season, safety Xavier Watts' NFL Draft stock, how to understanding PFF grades better, if Notre Dame is a College Football Playoff team, the biggest misconception about PFF and more. The podcast can be listened to via SoundCloud or on your preferred podcast platform including: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Podbean and Pocket Casts.

12:03

► If you missed the last episode of our aspiring-to-be-viral Notre Dame Football YouTube show, Football Never Sleeps, it keeps its shelf life long after the live presentation. We remain in our normal Monday at 7 ET time slot. Remember, if you miss the live show, you can catch up anytime on YouTube. Coming up in the wee hours of Sunday morning on our YouTube channel we’ll have our Postgame Takeaways show posted. So, grab some coffee and make us part of your Sunday morning.

Some quick programming notes:

12:02

Welcome to Notre Dame Football Live Chat, Florida State week.

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