It seems like Notre Dame football is at a major crossroads, with significant changes happening after an impressive 14-2 season. Despite the success, it's clear that the program's staff turnover is creating some big challenges for head coach Marcus Freeman. But it also looks like Freeman is working diligently to navigate these changes by bringing in some strong new hires.
Chris Ash replaces Al Golden
The decision to replace Al Golden with Chris Ash seems strategic, especially considering Ash's background with defensive backs and his leadership beside Luke Fickell. Golden's style was clearly popular, so it'll be interesting to see if Ash’s fiery approach can maintain that same level of success. His expertise should complement the strong defensive talent already present, but the transition could still have its bumps.
Ja’Juan Seider is a big get
With the talented trio of Jerimiyah Love, Jadarian Price, and Aneyas Williams at running back, having someone with Seider’s track record will certainly keep that position as a strength. His experience with developing 1,000-yard rushers at Penn State is a major win for the Irish.
A new GM (Mike Martin)
The search for a new General Manager is definitely an intriguing one. The evolving nature of college football’s rules around recruiting, the transfer portal, and NIL demands a savvy, experienced leader. Mike Martin seems like an excellent choice to help navigate this new era, and building out a robust scouting department could help the Irish gain an edge on the competition, especially with such a complex landscape.
Building for Long-Term Success
All in all, Marcus Freeman is making moves to stay ahead of the curve, and while there are inevitable challenges, these hires could help position Notre Dame for continued success. It's exciting to see how these changes will unfold and if they'll pay off in the long run. What do you think of these moves? Does the future of Notre Dame football look bright to you?
A Change For The Secondary
By Kevin Carretta
The Irish secondary was by far the team’s weakest link this past season. The main cause of this weakness was the lack of one-on-one coverage by our corners. I will admit that as the season progressed Ambrose Wooden and Mike Richardson did improve. But, their improvement wasn’t to the competitive level we need it to be in order to win every game on our schedule.
The Irish gave up 264 yards passing per game and only intercepted the football 8 times. During last season’s games, it appeared that the opposing team’s offense was able to throw and catch without any pressure from our coverage. Knowing that we gave up 14.6 yards per catch, I guess our opponents were able to do just that.
The weakness in our pass defense lies in our corners’ lack of ability to lock up on a receiver one-on-one without getting beat deep. Too many times early in the season Ambrose and Richardson were beat deep when they tried to put pressure on the receivers. As the season progressed, Coach Minter moved Ambrose and Richardson further and further off the line of scrimmage in order to protect against the big play. Our opponents reacted by just running short route after short route moving the ball down the field. It was a no-win situation.
I along with the rest of the Irish faithful hope that this situation will change come August. I hope to see our corners covering deep and being able to break on the football once it is thrown. I look to see our secondary play aggressive and have twice as many interceptions than Brady Quinn throws.
But, I don’t see Ambrose and Richardson being the source of this change. Rather, I feel that a couple of our incoming freshman will provide the spark that sets our pass defense ablaze. Yes, it will be strange to see two seniors who have been main stays in the defensive backfield the past two seasons lose significant playing time to freshmen. But, that is exactly what I expect.
The “STUD” and the most prized athlete in this year’s recruiting class is 6’0” 195 lbs corner Raeshon McNeil. McNeil is a cover corner that can not only play right away, but who also has a chance to become the corner that the Irish have so desperately needed for years. McNeil has size, speed and quickness. He can cover and he can tackle.
What impresses me the most about McNeil is his ability to break on the football when it is thrown. There is no wasted motion or energy in his game. His 15 career interceptions show that he has a natural nose for the football and goes after it aggressively when it is in the air. That type of “the ball is mine” attitude is something the Irish defensive backfield so desperately needs.
McNeil’s performance in the U.S. Army All-American game showed the nation just how talented he is and how fortunate we are to have signed him. His play not only showed he was able to compete against the top receivers in the country, but that he could also shut them down. Come August, I expect McNeil’s one-on-one coverage ability to earn him a starting spot at corner.
The other recruit who I feel will compete for substantial playing time in the Irish secondary is 6’1” 175 lbs Darrin Walls. Walls is big, fast and athletic for a cover corner. Like McNeil, Walls has the ability to break on the football once it is thrown. In addition to having the talent to lock up one-on-one with a receiver, Wall’s can tackle. He plays the game aggressive and smart. Both of these attributes are what our defensive backfield needs.
The last, and in some ways the most important, need for our secondary is a more aggressive style of blitzing defense. Last season Coach Minter did not blitz enough, which I feel contributed to Ambrose and Richardson’s demise. Too often our opponent’s QB was allowed to just sit in the pocket and wait for the open receiver. Although good, our defensive line’s pass rush wasn’t always able get the pressure on the QB that our secondary so desperately needed. Blitzing our LB’s more will force our opponent’s QB to throw the ball quicker, which should aid our corners’ coverage and present opportunities for interceptions.
As for Sergio Brown, Jashaad Gaines and Lenoard Gordan, I look for them to contribute in every facet of the kicking game. Their physical attributes will be key to our success in keeping our opponents deep in their own territory when we punt and kickoff.