JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat | Oct. 28, 2026 | 10/28/2026

Notre Dame Football Live Chat | Oct. 28, 2026

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Eric Hansen

3:10

OK, I ran out of time. I need to get a faster brain or faster fingers or both. Thanks for all the great questions. We'll be back to do it all over again for Miami week next Wednesday at noon ET. It's going to be epic.

3:08

There were certainly opportunities to do that, and just because of the BYU loss, doesn't mean it wasn't taking places to some extent. The loss and the bye week certinaly presented an opporunity to idenitify the holes and patch them.

Al from Philly

3:07

Eric, Other than the o-line and maybe the RBs I haven't seen the team development both offensively (the passing game) and defensively that I thought the easy early season schedule would allow for. Am I wrong to think that way? Thanks.

Eric Hansen

3:07

Hi Michael. I am not against that concept. I'd have to run it by someone much higher on the On3 food chain, which again, is just about everyone.

Michael From the ATL

Sorry didn't mean to send the last missive. I was going to say that I left out my Salutation for the note about Lou's Navy - ND articles, so that was the Salutation. Thanks for doing these chats!!!

Eric, !!!!!::??:)??, Potentate of punctuation, Vizier of vowels, Coronel of consonants, Nutmeg of consolation, etc, etc,

3:06

I believe you guys own the rights to the great Lou's work product. If so, this week you should post his excellent work on the history of the Navy - Nd relationship, with the pictures that always accompanied Lou's articles. By the way, 1st time poster, but lurking in the shadows many moons.

Eric Hansen

3:05

Coach Hansen? Do I get a coach's salary with that? If so, I'm all in! In all honesty, I'm not sure this defensive part of this lends itself well to the chat fornat. I think I need a telestrator and some film and need to review the tape first. Or better yet a beer and a coctail napkin to doodle on. For the offensive line question, if everyone is healthy, the only change I'm pondering is if Matty Augustine in the starting lineup at right guard makes me better. I feel like I might have given you a word salad on the defense part of this or at least a mouthful of kale. Sorry.

tomf, kennesaw, ga

2:57

Hey Coach Hansen, can you please explain to us why your D has had such a difficult time defending the middle of the field and what you are doing to fix it??? Also, how is it that your very talented LB's do not have a single sack yet this season and how can that change??? Finally, you have had an extra week to self-evaluate, do you see any changes in the OL heading into the toughest part of your schedule??? Thank you for your expert answers and not the usual word salad that most coaches give. Go Irish!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Eric Hansen

2:56

Tom. It sounds like your wife has great taste in bithday dinners. That's the upside of those spaghetti sauce stains. ... As to the football stuff, I am not sure I should be telling people how to react, because I process the winning and losing differently. Some of it surprises me. But as long as people don't put unwante For Sale signs in MY yard ... What I think is too large a leap in logic is that these problems are systemic. Or unfixable. Again, ND is 16-8 against ranked teams since the start of 2022. The largest of those losses is 13 points, to Louisville in 2023. The last three have been by a combined 8 points. So I am not seeing the loss to BYU maybe as you are.

Tom in Evanston

2:49

Hi Eric. Reading the series of articles on what ND must fix post-BYU and Freeman's comments in his press conference Monday is bringing back my PTSD from the title games against Alabama and tOSU. There doesn't seem to be a talent gap, but it seems that teams are still able to entice ND into unfavorable offenses/defenses. I might not be reacting correctly, but this seems to be rooted in not trying to enforce your will on other teams. The coordinators, and by extension, Freeman, seem to focus more on taking what's given (not that that's always wrong). Good teams with good coaches seem to scheme to do what they want to do. Is this a systemic weakness in ND's approach? On the lighter side, I added to my collection of stained t-shirts with spaghetti and meatballs on my wife's birthday. We should compare our stains sometime!

Eric Hansen

2:49

Hi Ed. I was asked something similar earlier in the chat, but let me throw one more thought your way. CJ Carr looking like CJ Carr and trusting his teammates and not trying to do too much. Granted, Navy isn't a good pass defense at all, but I think Carr looking like himself would be a great sign that might be transferrable to the other games.

Ed from Sayville NY

2:43

Good day Eric. Hope all is well with you and your family of first team individuals. Aside from playing more receivers on Saturday, what other aspects of the approach to playing the Midshipmen can provide some hints about what the staff is thinking in relation to Miami and the rest of the season?

Eric Hansen

2:43

Ab10, please add your hometown next time. I published a column on that precise topic this morning. I'd suggest it if you want more depth than a chat answer. Here it is: Notre Dame's wide receiver rotation is ready to grow. Can Mike Brown make it happen?

But the short answer to your question is, yes, getting more than 3 dependable receivers from a room of 14 healthy ones raises questions about development.

Ab10

2:40

I know this question has been beaten to death, but why do we think they aren't rotating receivers? And if we aren't rotating receivers because they can't run the correct route- isn't the coaching staff then exposing itself as unable to develop the position?

Eric Hansen

2:39

Are you guys drinking? I hope not, because these compliments are awesome. I don't think you were misled. Boubcar Traore missing from the game was huge. Marcus Freeman on Monday said he was worth 7 points in a game when I asked about the pass rush. However, where Chris Ash and company get dinged is there should have been a Plan B that was implemented sooner and more effectively to generate pass rush, and there needs to be more innovative ways going forward, especially in games where ND faces elite QBs and offensive lines. Happy Halloween and happy bare feet.

Sean,Greensboro

Thanks for all you do to keep us informed,Happy Halloween!

2:37

Oh great one.I thought we had a strong defensive line rotation, yet against BYU pressure on the QB was minimal.Were we misled? Guess I can put my shoes back on now!

Eric Hansen

2:37

Hi George. Great question. I wish I had a more interesting answer for you. Pat Murphy was the ND baseball coach for the first few years I was in the South Bend market. But at the time, I was the Big Ten beat writer, and my only crossover in those years was ND football and occassionally ND women's hoops. So my encounters with Pat Murphy were few. So no great stories, One of my coworkers covered him regularly. The first ND baseball coach I really got to know and know him better than any before or since was Paul Mainieri. Nothing but great things to say about him.

George from El Segundo

2:30

Hi Eric: Hope you and yours remain safe and well. Just changing things up a bit. Did you get to know Pat Murphy while he was coaching ND baseball, and do you have any memories you can share? Thank you.

Eric Hansen

2:30

Hi Jack, and thank you. The supposition is that strength of schedule will be more heavily emphasized than it is now, but what exactly does SOS mean and how would it be measured. My sense is that it would at least convince teams to be a little more daring in their non-conference scheduling, not universally, but most teams. Ohio St-Michigan and Texas-Oklahoma are conference games, so those are going to happen regardless, but I think the 24-team playoff makes USC more comfortable with the decision to resume the ND series in 2030 and likely with a new coach by then for the Trojans.

Jack,Strongsville, Ohio

2:26

Hi Eric. Could you give me your thoughts on the proposed 24 team CFB playoff format to start in 2027? This format may not be conducive to a complete answer but specifically how do you think it will affect the regular season and long time rivalry games such as ND-USC, Texas -Oklahoma, Ohio State-Michigan etc. Thanks as always for your great work.

Eric Hansen

2:26

Adon Shuler and Luke Talich also have decisions to make, and Brandon Logan, while down the safety depth chart, at some point has to decide if he wants to make baseball a full-time thing.

2:25

Hi Tim. Yes I do think he plays this year, especially if Notre Dame makes the playoff. And if ND has an extended run in the playoff and he plays at an All-America level during that run, I think the percentage is small he comes back. So there are a lot of variables that are unknown now that turn this from an educateed guess into having to be a fortune teller. I would say if I am the ND coaches, I am planning for him not to be on the 2027 roster, but would be happy to take him if he is. (more)

Got a little tangled there. Now to Tim's question ...

2:22

Damian, that was pretty much a textbook example of how to answer your own question. No notes. Good job.

Tim from Pittsburgh

2:22

Hi Eric hope all is well with Tae Johnson out this week and presumably not practicing do you think he plays this year? Also what percentage would you give of him returning next year with playing so little this year? Thanks

Damian Becker, Lynbrook, NY

2:19

Aside from the fact that ND lost the game, my other reason for being disappointed was that I was not going to see 1. next to Notre Dame in the polls. Unlike other losses in the past whether under Freeman such as TAM and Miami last season or Kelly, I do not believe that BYU exposed weaknesses that ND won't be able correct due to the shortcomings of personnel. I believe that BYU caught ND off guard with certain tactics and trick plays and caught ND on an off night. I do not see BYU loss as harbinger of decline for this season. I see it as what the team needed and as a stepping stone to a promising season. What about you and why?

Eric Hansen

2:19

Jim, I'm kind of mesmerized by your tribute, I am having trouble remembering what the question is. Thank you. Are we related? If not are you looking to adopt? To your question. Film study is not a regular part of my routine. For me it's not worth the time investement looking at the raw footage. What I do invest in is talking to people way smarter than me who have watched the film and learning from them. And one of the best is a young analyst named Landon Tengwall. He combs through and shows the best plays on his film studies on YouTube and gives context to them. Now if I could clone myself, I might do a little more of it on my own. But then would I have two heads on Mount Rushmore? Seriously, wow, that was flattering.

Jim from Rochester, NY

Not to prolong this but I was born to be a ND fan. My name is Jim Crowley. Alas, not the original but a poor facsimile thereof.

Eric, my compliments are truly sincere and not just an attempt to butter you up :). I have been following ND fairly closely for 60 years. The custodian at my elementary school was an older gentleman who loved ND. He subscribed to the South Bend Tribune and it would usually arrive around the middle of the week. He would let me come down to his office after school and devour every article about the latest game. Outside of Soth Bend, I had to be the best informed 11-year-old fan in the country! There have been some very good journalists through the years but only you and Lou S would make the mountain. That leaves a lot of room for them to give you a big head! Only kidding of course :)

2:09

Hello Mr. ND Mount Rushmore worthy!!!!! How much, if any, is film viewing/study a part of your regular routine? Do you find it helpful overall or perhaps just in writing articles about a certain position or topic? Has this changed at all during your years covering the Irish? Thank you for indulging my curiosity. Very grateful for your excellent coverage of the team so many love and cheer for.

Eric Hansen

2:08

The more alarming numbers on both sides of the ball is third-down efficiency, 37th on offense and 83rd on defense. ... To Notre Dame WBB, it's going to be a fun season with a lot of ups and downs in November and December. By Jan. 10, the Irish will have played No. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 8 in the AP poll and have a home and home with No. 7 Louisville later than that. But I do think because of how close this team is and how willing and able the freshmen have been to adapting, they will gel quicker. A BIG key is C Anaya Hardy being healthy and the X-factor coach Niele Ivey thinks she is.

2:03

In red zone offense, Notre Dame is 53rd at 88 percent. So in 33 red zone trips, ND has failed to score 4 times. But 2 of those happened in the BYU game, one at the end of each half, and it cost ND the game. So that 53rd ranking is more a reflection of the BYU game than what the Irish have been doing the rest of the season. Now on defense, ND is 88th, yielding scores on 13 of 15 attempts. But only 3 of those scores have been TDs. And the 15 opponent trips into the red zone are tied for the fourth-fewest in the FBS, so that context cleans that up a bit. (more)

1:58

Ciao Paul and grazie. C'è una signora molto simpatica a Phoenix che si chiede se stiamo semplicemente usando Google Traduttore e se nessuno dei due sappia cosa stia dicendo l'altro, quindi lasciami tradurre il tuo in..." Paul complimented the four predictions piece I did earlier this week ... there were some national stat rankings at the end of the article for ND and all 12 of his opponents, so we'll pick up in English from there, or in my case Gibberish. The red zone stats are not as alarming as they might appear on the surface, They reallly need context, so here it is. (more)

Paul from Knoxville

1:47

Ciao Eric: Mi sono piaciuto molto il tuo articolo delle quatro predizioni -- buon lavoro!!! My question concerns the by the numbers stats at the end of the article: I noticed we do not rank well in red zone O or D, so why do you assess that's the case, or is there something skewing the rankings? Also, since WBB season is almost upon us, I can't resist asking 1 question about the Lady Irish: Do you anticipate it will take a while for this team of mostly freshmen and transfers to gel and achieve their ceiling -- similar to last year's squad? The early season schedule looks tough.

Eric Hansen

1:46

On offense, the more the merrier, but again in pragmatic terms, more Jonaz Walton, more receivers outside of the top 3, TE Ian Premer and OG Matty Augustine and C Joe Otting. Those would be my priorities if I get an opportunity to flex my depth.

1:45

Len!!!!!!! I don't know that it's going to be a marked personnel shift for this game, especially if we look at who played a lot against Navy last year and Rice this year, with neither of those games being competitive. Jaiden Ausberry tends to get more snaps in those types of games, so mark that one down. Tionne Gray played a lot early and played very well against Rice. Elijah Hughes usually gets opportunities against those teams and plays well. I think you'll see a heavy does of Jaylen Sneed too. I don't know that there's much translatable to getting ready for Miami, but I'd want to get my young corners in the game anyway, given the injury status of DJ McKinney and Mark Zackery. Just to get them game reps, because schematically. there's really not carryover. Also I wonder if there's another DE option in case Loghan Thomas doesn't come back quickly from injury. (more)

Len from the Jersey Shore

1:28

Hi Eric!!!!!!l Midseason bye and off to the playoff races for the Irish! Each week will be a mini playoff game from here on. Considering its Navy this week who defensively will play more to defend the Navy offense? Who will play more to maybe help get that player ready for the following Miami game? Maybe Joey Obrien? Similar questions for the offense. Will it be WR's, TE's or maybe Matty Augustine earlier in the game that will play more? Thanks as always for hosting

Eric Hansen

1:27

Oh I love the way you worked into those questions, The Beave. Thanks for the hype. Here are my predictions: I will say six receivers beyond the Faison/Greathouse/Gilbert bloc catch passes. The guys who will likely get the most opportunities beyond those three on Saturday will be Mylan Graham, Elijah Burress, Jerome Bettis Jr., and Matt Jeffery. I'm going to go out on a limb and say Graham, because the coaches really want to get him going.

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