JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat Oct. 19, 2022

Notre Dame Football Live Chat Oct. 19, 2022

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Guest

2:26

Eric, after the six games played so far, do you think that ND coaches have provided enough evidence that they are reacting to what they are seeing from the other teams and making adjustments during the game, or is it just execution that is holding the team back?

Eric Hansen

2:25

Bob, most (but not all) offensive coordinators prefer the box upstairs, because they can see formations, personnel, etc., so much better. I don't think it's a bad question, but I do think Tommy Rees is better off in the box.

Bob Loganville, GA

2:23

Any thoughts to getting TR out of the box and on the field to get a read on the offense? BK knew a lot more about offenses than MF and could read and relay information. Would it be beneficial for TR to actually look into the offensive players eyes and talk to them as a unit in stead of talking on a phone to only Pyne?. (sorry if a duplicate was not sure if the previous question sent)

Eric Hansen

2:22

Tom, keep the questions coming. I understand in games against Ohio State, UNC, BYU why you'd not want to speed up the tempo. You're trying to play clock control/ball control against some powerful offense. Against Stanford, especially, it would seem that some tempo made sense. So I'm with you on that game.

Tom from Toronto

2:20

nothing hurry up about the offense this year and there was no switch they could turn on to hurry up. They were doomed.
Do you agree or disagree? Or should I hang up my keyboard for the rest of the year and keep my comments/questions to myself and just read the transcript? As usual, I appreciate your insight and wisdom, even if it hurts. Thank you.

Eric Hansen

2:20

"Me and TR and coach Stuckey talk every day, I'm in their office watching film, we're figuring out, they're telling me what I need to get on the field, they're telling me, teaching me about more coverages and stuff, and teaching me about how to affect defenders, how to run routes, everything. So it's been a process. They've been clear on what they've needed for me. And obviously, I did what I needed to do to get on the field."

2:19

I think the best way to answer your question is let one of the players do it for me. So here's Tobias Merriweather from Tuesday night on his path to playing time:

"I think it's just part of the journey. Like, every guy has taken their turn, sitting down, waiting, you know, getting better in practice every day. That's what it is about. It's not that Tommy didn't want to play me. He's told me he wants to play me, but I have to be ready. Because imagine I go in that moment and I'm not ready for it. And then I don't run the right route, I get the player wrong, drop a ball, then the whole media is like, everything's a lot of different story. Waiting for that moment, I think was just part of the process part of my process. And we're working every day to get more reps in the game. That's what it's about. We got six games left. (more)

Ron Delaware

sorry hit wrong key. My question is the coaching staff really communicating specific reasons for not playing I ask this because Marcus comments about coaching better and giving coaches confidence in the player is so vague. I think it also doesn’t make fans comfortable he really knows what the issues are.

2:15

Happy Hump DayEric. Thanks for answering my question Monday night. I see your point but in this day with no one year sit out for transfers and the NIL which I think will ruin college sports these highly recruited freshmen are a risk to transfer if they don’t see some plays in the games or if they don’t totally understand why they are not on the field.

Eric Hansen

2:14

Ryan, for a first-time questioner, you sure asked a tough one. I think that question will be easier to answer not only after the season conludes, but after spring ball. That's because that's when we'll learn so much about Marcus Freeman's crisis management ability, his ability to adapt and evolve and his ability to make good roster and staff decisions. I've mentioned this before in columns. There's a lot of things Marcus has done in less than a year in big-picture areas it's taken other ND head coaches years to get right -- if they ever got it right. The man who Marcus Freeman is also informs me as to his potential as a head coach. The guy has conquered a lot of adversity in his life. That matters. All of that is enough to make me optimistic about his future regardless of what the recent past looked like. So if you're pressing me on 2025, I will hedge toward yes. ... and thanks for jumping into the question portal today.

Ryan From Hampton, VA

2:04

Eric, Long time reader, first time writing in. In your personal opinion, does Marcus Freeman have what it takes to not only stay at ND but to also continue as a head coach past 2025? I know there have been, and will continue to be growing pains, but when should we expect to see a polished HC? Thanks for all you do!

Eric Hansen

2:02

Thanks, Dan. A reason for the offensive struggles, as some of the previous questions have gone into, is the QB and WR positions. This was exposed as far back as the 2018 playoff. However, very few teams have a tight end room like ND's or O-Line talent the level of ND's. So there's a great complement of offensive firepower waiting there when ND does get the QB talent and WRs up to standard. ... I'm not sure Brian Kelly said something about a ceiling ... maybe it was implied. But recruiting at the high level Marcus Freeman has to this point give ND THE CHANCE to push that ceiling higher.

Dan from Vernon Hills Il

1:58

Eric, thanks for hosting these chats. Really appreciate it. After watching Tennessee vs. Alabama it looks like Notre Dame plays a different game offensively. They are quicker, faster and use a perimeter passing game a lot. Is the main reason that Notre Dame’s offense struggles is there just isn’t the talent in the quarterback room or wide receiver room to keep up with those elite programs? Does this make it harder for Tommy Rees to run the offense he would like to run? Also, is Brian Kelly right about Notre Dame having a ceiling and they have reached it?

Eric Hansen

1:56

Fr. Greg. Thanks for your thoughts. I didn't see a question lurking among them, so I'll let them stand -- other than giving you props for the Big Ten West reference.

Fr. Greg Springfield il

1:55

I strongly sense that Coach Freeman will be an excellent coach. Secondly, his success will be determined by those closest to him. Namely, his leadership staff (Coaches), his recruiting, and the 3 to 4 people who serve as his mentors. Third, I think Tyler B. has the potential to lead the team to a National Championship. However, he needs experience and the wisdom to run an avoid contact. Fourth, tackling is a problem for the secondary, along with looking back at the ball. If this doesn't change, we might not be able to even win the west division in the Big Ten. Finally, when ND is great, the team takes names and kicks butt. We cannot be pushed around! Thanks for your great work, Eric! God bless!

Eric Hansen

1:51

Hi Jason. Thanks for being a part ot today's chat and for the extra exclamation points. Let me address one of your premises before we get to your question. I think overall this is a talented roster, but it has holes. And the opponents have done a good job of exposing those holes, while ND has been slow to get those positions to evolve (QB, WR, CB). The Virginia Tech game was a revelation, because it revealed to Brian Kelly and Tommy Rees how to maximize Jack Coan's skill set and minimize his lack of mobility. So to your question, I think the answer is both. Pyne being more consistent with his accuracy and Rees/Freeman finding better ways to play to his strengths.

Jason from Grand Rapids, MI

1:43

Hey Eric. Thanks for the chats!!! Last year, Kelly got a little lucky with some close wins (FSU, VA Tech and Toledo) that perhaps masked the true talent level of the team and this year MF is 0-2 in those same games. I think he'll get better with experience and am encouraged he's reaching out to Holtz and Tressel as mentors. It's easy to blame Rees for this, but I feel we are a 4-2 team with Buchner at QB and his mobility can't be taken for granted when we look so one dimensional. Is it just Pyne making better throws or is there another mid-season adjustment Rees can make to improve our Offense? Thanks.

Eric Hansen

1:41

3) Notre Dame is 80th nationally in total offseason and 99th in scoring offense at midseason. ND did play the Nos. 5 and 13 teams in total defense, but they've also played 67, 94, 97 and 127. There's not way to justify those low rankings or the fact that ND has started slow on offense every game. Six first-quarter points over six games. I'm open to the possibility that the Irish will improve in the back half of the season, but they won't face three defenses that are statistically as bad as BYU, Stanford and North Carolina the rest of the season.

1:35

Adam. I appreciate you too and really appreciate your approach to this question. You get an 'A' for execution. Here are the criticisms that I have. That doesn't make them valid, but here goes: 1) It's unfortunate that Tyler Buchner got hurt. I'm very curious as to how he would have evolved as the starter. But Tommy had a hand and a say in recruiting the rest of the QB room. And what plan B looked like. And he's responsbile for making plan B work. 2) I would imagine Marcus Freeman's vision for the offensive identity isn't always easily baked into every game plan. But Rees must find a way to do it or find workable compromises that make the team better. (more)

Adam (Dayton, OH)

1:25

Hello Eric, we appreciate you! Can't figure out Tommy Rees...not shouting "Fire him!" like message boards want, but frustration certainly. The results are what they are, just not sure the reasons. Sometimes I think the offense is too worried about being "o-line driven" and they are stubbornly running into loaded boxes. I think "lack of creativity" is mostly bogus, and film would show that he often has creative play design. But, is he trying to do too much, with too many formations? The "check with me" offense, I understand, but is he over-doing it? Also...to see Tobias with his athleticism an and route running...to hear Tommy's press conference and their work on drawing up the perfect play for him...I mean is it that hard to draw up plays for that talent? Different story if he was trying to get me open, but not Tobias. It's like Tommy may be making this harder than it needs to be. Sorry for the manifesto...but the point is, A LOT of criticisms. Of the ones you have heard, what do you think are valid?

Eric Hansen

1:24

Bill Belichick did the same thing with his assistants at New England and that contributed to some awkward and clumsy media interactions for Charlie Weis in his early years as ND's head coach. ... I think what I'm most interested in hearing after a loss is not who's to blame, but how it's going to get fixed. That's a good way to handle it, I think.

1:22

You are not overreacting to the word "execution." It came up so many times Saturday night, I actually counted them and included them in my column. Those postgame losing press conferences are difficult for coaches not used to speaking with the media on a regular basis. I think Brian Kelly did his assistants (who aspired to be head coaches) a disservice by having them speak to the media so infrequently. Freeman now is giving his coordinators a weekly opportunity (Tuesday nights) to get that experience. That's a good more for everyone involved, media, coaches and fans. (more)

Guest

1:15

Larry from Topton, PA. Hi Eric; Thanks for being the voice of reason during good times and bad. My biggest disappointment with coach Freeman has been with his comments after games; specifically with his repeated usage of the word, and fixation on, execution. When I hear a coach say the problem is execution, what I hear is some form of: “The coaches are doing their job, but gee, the players are not doing their job”. I do not like hearing that as fan, and I do not think I would like it as a player. I would rather hear something concise like “the coaches need to coach better, and the players need to play better”. Am I overreacting to the word execution? Thanks Eric.

Eric Hansen

1:15

As for the QBs, Marcus Freeman didn't have anything to do with that position on the roster, but Tommy Rees did. These are the guys he recruited. Getting CJ Carr in the 2024 class was outstanding. So far 2023 has been a bust. There are a couple of months to change that. But yes, the QB and the WR positions are a big part of the problems with this team and well as the potential answers now and in the future.

1:11

Joe, you got cut off there at the end, so I'm not sure if there was an additional part to your question/remarks. So I will just address the part I can see. Your point about WRs and QBs rings true. Of the combined 11 wide receiver prospects the Irish signed out of high school in the 2017-20 recruiting cycles, nine ended up transferring, switching positions or both. Current grad senior Braden Lenzy and 2022 NFL Draft early entry Kevin Austin Jr. are the exceptions. ... ND has three Rivals top 150 committed at WR for the 2023 class and is chasing one more ... so help is on the way. (more)

Guest

1:02

Joe H Williams Bay Wi Hey Eric I’m as disappointed as anyone after watching that awful performance Saturday but I would try and add some perspective if I can While I think it’s fair to say that with the exception of Michael Mayer and Joe Alt almost every else on our rooster has underachieved so far,our biggest concerns has been quarterback and wide receiver play.While I don’t completely exonerate Marcus Freeman on that I think it’s fair to point out that both those positions were very poorly recruited by the last coaching staff God bless Drew Pyne’s competitive spirit but a low 3 star 5”10 quarterback should not be starting at Notre Dame As far as wide receiver goes With the occasional exception of Lorenzo Styles I see no one running good routes or creating any separation Again some of that does fall on the coaching staff but the reality is that both position groups are fair to poor Help is on the way and if you just show some patience I’m sure with the way he’s recruiting Coach Freeman will get this correcte

Eric Hansen

1:01

There's a shared responbility between players and coaching to changing the "why" part of the execution issues. But when you're 3-3 six games in, the burden should be more on the coaches to provide those fixes.

1:00

Perhaps that's what Marcus Freeman is trying to avoid, which leads us to our own conclusions. So here's mine. I do think the less-than-expected continuity on both sides of the ball was a bigger challenge than both the coaching staff and the media (or at least me) anticipated. For instance, I don't think Al Golden's scheme is overly complicated. But with new terminology, new philosophies, new leadership and three different schemes and coordinators in three years -- it adds up to making it complicated. On offense, it took some time for the offensive line to get it together. Sometimes a dynamic QB (think Brady Quinn in 2005-06) can camouflage growing pains and offensive weaknesses. The Irish are not dynamic at QB (or wide receiver). So they need to be extremely efficient and consistent. (more)

12:51

John, thanks for the feedback. Because of the question formatting, it really takes a collective effort to get to the bottom of certain topics when we're interviewing Marcus Freeman. On Mondays, we get one question and a follow each. On Thursdays, sometimes it's just one question. So you perhaps can see the challenge. Fortunately, we've got a pretty good beat group, who are looking for the same answers. And we did try to collectively get that answer on Monday. But consider this: the coach is kind of in a lose-lose situation with those types of questions. Brian Kelly, especially early in his time at ND, was pretty direct about it. And people got on him for throwing his players under the bus. (more)

John from GLENVIEW, il

12:44

Hi Eric. Great job as always. Really enjoy the videos you and Tyler are putting out. Keep up the great work. I really appreciated your article after the Stanford game where Coach Freeman mentioned “failing to execute” too many times to count. It’s his go to comment every time the team underperforms, which unfortunately has been a lot. Someone, and I hope that will be you, needs to ask the million dollar question to Coach Freeman of “WHY” after Spring practice, fall camp and now 1/2 a season why this team is still failing to execute? It would seem that it either has to be the player repeatedly failing to execute which suggests a different player needs to be playing or the coaching hasn’t been good enough to correct the repeated mistakes a player is making. I fear it’s the latter as some of the players (Foskey, Crawford,etc) are playing far worse this year than they were last year. I can’t believe there’s been such a big dropWhat do you think is the reason “why” we keep failing to execute? Please ask the coach

Eric Hansen

12:42

Bob, thanks. Especially against the fronts Stanford was showing, I think that would have been a reasonable adjustment and one that would have worked. In Rees' defense, Drew Pyne did miss some wide-open receivers that perhaps would have encouraged Rees to go down that play-calling path more persistently. ... My assumption is that UNLV will look at the Stanford tape and deploy a similar defensive philosophy until/unless the Irish show that can make you pay.

Bill milford,ct

12:39

So 6 games in with the same offensive game plan until Stanford executed the obvious defense that everyone on the schedule will follow -stock the line -double/triple Mayer . So let’s reverse it ? Why won’t Tommy open up the passing game - I.e Merriweather & others — flood the zone — Payne has shown he can make those passes ( assuming protection which he’s had) maybe then the run game opens up — we’re just too one dimensional & predictable. UNLV is a good place to start ? Thanks for all you do each week

Eric Hansen

12:38

Hi Bob. The return bar is tricky. Thanks for your patience and diligence in submiting your question in multiple tries. Losses like the one against Stanford on Saturday nght tend to stir up what seem like reasonable solutions from the fan base and the media. And certainly change is in order, in moderation. Let's go with Drew Pyne. A week ago he was on a trajectory to set the single-season school record for pass efficiency and completion percentage. Now, he's not tall enough. If the two QBs behind him gave ND a better chance of winning, they would be playing. As for Rees, what would be you alternative at this point if you wanted to make a change?

Bob Vale

12:29

Hi Mr Hansen, this portal is giving me trouble LOL. Nonetheless, lets move forward. oh wait , its like our struggling offense. we do not have an offense. When will we move forward from this offense. several teams that have great o coordinators and great statistics. I think Tommy should be a QB coach not an offensive coordinator. what will it take to move forward? Obviously, we should have taken a QB and wide receivers in the transfer portal and an o coordinator. Why has this offense been so predictable? Have you seen photos of Drew Pyne behind his o line.. he can not see over their shoulders. he can not be the answer to a high powered offense. we have two QBs that are taller than 6'1" . lets put them in to play

Eric Hansen

12:28

Harvey, maybe your quibble with Chris Tyree should be about the way he is used in some of the games ... maybe not playing to his strengths? Even though Chris has started five of the six games, Audric Estimé has more carries (76 to 60), Logan Diggs has 47 but remember, he was eased in at the beginning of the season because of injury. I like the thiree-man rotation. I think I can make a strong case for keeping Tyree in that rotation. He gives ND formational and play-calling flexibility, because you can change a play at the line of scrimmage and put him in the slot. He's the fastest of the three backs, though we haven't seen that breakaway speed this season. He's also the best receiver of the three, behind only TE Michael Mayer and WR Lorenzo Styles in receptions.

Guest

12:18

Why is Tyree the starting RB? As soon as he's touched he goes down.

HArvey Vaughn

Why is Tyree the starting RB?

12:18

Houston TX

Eric Hansen

12:14

Hi Dave. Your question is representative of the sentiments of a lot of the chat-heads this week. I'm not a big fan of in-season staff changes. DC Brian VanGorder's purge four gams into the 2016 season was a rare one that I endorsed and one that worked. It still didn't salvage the season, but I do think it helped get the defense moving in the right direction for 2017 and helped mitigate some of the recruiting losses in that cycle. ... In this case, I think it's fair and the best decision to wait until the season is over to evaluate any staff changes. It's not as if the staff is resistant to doing things a different/better way. There are weekly evaluations. It's their first year together. I'm in favor of letthing things play out.

Dave, ponte vedra, fl

12:08

I made my annual trek to SB last week and was dismayed by the performance of the Irish. I’m not going to criticize the young men, I’m going to question the adults in the room. That team was flat and uninspired from the start. That’s coaching. Rees insists upon trying to run Tyree between the tackles, never in space. We had one playmaker, Merriweather who stood on the sidelines at the end of the game when a playmaker was needed. It’s still early, but I have my doubts about the coaching. Am I wrong to think changes should be made, particularly when it comes to play calling?

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