Just an open ended thread to discuss your expectations W/L and recruiting over the short term 2-3 years and then beyond? 

I feel like if this team is a 10 win team but is also fun to watch over the next few years, it will be a success with all of the things MF will be learning as he goes. God knows there were plenty of lessons for the previous coach and he was tenured/experienced as a HC.  

6 minutes ago, JTennant said:

Just an open ended thread to discuss your expectations W/L and recruiting over the short term 2-3 years and then beyond? 

I feel like if this team is a 10 win team but is also fun to watch over the next few years, it will be a success with all of the things MF will be learning as he goes. God knows there were plenty of lessons for the previous coach and he was tenured/experienced as a HC.  

Well 2010 was 8-5 so above that would be sweet, I'll watch the recruiting class rankings a bit closer then the record. I'd want to see freeman follow through on the recruiting because I think who BK couldn't get was a reason swarbrick would not give 10m+ to a coach that would be 70 by the end of his contract. 

Min 9 wins next yr, then back to 10+ wins and competing with the top tier programs at a higher level. IDGAF how much more likable Freeman is than Kelly, if he’s not winning at a level equal to or higher than Kelly, he’s not getting it done. 
 

And that’s always been something that annoyed me a great deal with you guys. You seem to value liking the coach as a person more than wins and that’s beyond idiotic. 

3 hours ago, FaithInIrishForever said:

Well 2010 was 8-5 so above that would be sweet, I'll watch the recruiting class rankings a bit closer then the record. I'd want to see freeman follow through on the recruiting because I think who BK couldn't get was a reason swarbrick would not give 10m+ to a coach that would be 70 by the end of his contract. 

The whole reason he was hired w/ZERO HC experience at 35 was bc he’s an Ace recruiter. If he’s not pulling in consistent top 5-10 classes, why was he hired? Bc the current players like him? That’s not a good enough reason.

11-2 record is 85% winning percentage which would be legendary for a career

9-4 is 69% which would be disappointing for an ND coach.

10-3 = 77% which would match Devine and Holtz (& be better than Kelly)

As a result, I would hope for 10 wins a year on average and use that as his golden standard

 

1 hour ago, ELDER06 said:

Min 9 wins next yr, then back to 10+ wins and competing with the top tier programs at a higher level. IDGAF how much more likable Freeman is than Kelly, if he’s not winning at a level equal to or higher than Kelly, he’s not getting it done. 
 

And that’s always been something that annoyed me a great deal with you guys. You seem to value liking the coach as a person more than wins and that’s beyond idiotic. 

Where has anyone said they don’t care whether or not the team wins under Freeman? 

1 hour ago, ELDER06 said:

The whole reason he was hired w/ZERO HC experience at 35 was bc he’s an Ace recruiter. If he’s not pulling in consistent top 5-10 classes, why was he hired? Bc the current players like him? That’s not a good enough reason.

Yup thats why I'm going to follow recruting closer then on field results in year 1. I want both always don't get  me wrong

Year 1 schedule is rough.  Future schedules are tougher than our recent schedules as well

 

We may be better than last year with a worse record in year 1.  Anything less than 8 wins is a disaster

 

Recruiting for the 23 class should be a top 7 class.  Anything less would be a disappointment to me 

I will say this. I think it’s a 9 win season. That schedule is going to be tough. That Ohio State game is probably a loss. But I guess you should never count out a former coach/player of a school. 
 

I would want at least a top 5 class his first year. Just because it is his first year and he should get a bump for that. 
 

If he wins at Ohio State, I’m expecting a top 3 class. 
 

But top 7 is my number for him. BK never averaged that. But that’s what I think he can do. 

13 minutes ago, golson5 said:

Year 1 schedule is rough.  Future schedules are tougher than our recent schedules as well

 

We may be better than last year with a worse record in year 1.  Anything less than 8 wins is a disaster

 

Recruiting for the 23 class should be a top 7 class.  Anything less would be a disappointment to me 

I completely agree with this. The schedule next year looks horrific…atm. Our schedules usually seem less daunting as the season starts but we’ll see. 
 

We know Freeman will be a big step up from Kelly in regards to recruiting. If he surrounds himself with smart people and can figure out the QB situation then the sky is the limit. 

It’s a tough first year schedule. I don’t know that I’d be upset with 9 wins next year but realistically I see 10 wins as the ceiling next year. After that I would say 10 win years with the ability to go higher and compete with the big boys. 

Completely agree with jbrown on those percentages and what they show.  Really good post there

10-2 next season.  I can see 11-1 depending on how Clemson bounces back.

1 hour ago, NYGoldenDomer said:

10-2 next season.  I can see 11-1 depending on how Clemson bounces back.

that is kind of where I am at as well. With a young/new QB (regardless of who wins), a new head coach, I expect some mistakes to be made.

9-3 next year, not getting blown out in any game. Top 8 recruiting with improvement on the way

Best case - 10-2 (Ls to OSU and Clemson)

Most likely - 9-3 (another L to USC, BYU, or UNC)

Worst case - 6-6 (Ls to  all mentioned above and Cal or BC) 

If either of the first two scenarios happens then a Top 10 recruiting class and continued improvement. If the Worst Case occurs then the recruiting class will imploded and it will be a long rebuilding process.

As MJ in the new Spider-Man says repeatedly throughout movie (or my mantra for the past 30+ yrs) prepare for the worst and then you can’t be disappointed. 

Beat case 12 - 0

worst case 0 - 12

Im guessing closer to 12 - 0 than 0 - 12. Besides going to enjoy the bowl game, off season news, and spring practice updates. Happy to have Freeman and believe he will be the next coach to get a statue.

best case is easily 12-0. All 12 teams are beatable next year...

My expectation is to continue the winning ways of the past several years and be in the discussion for a spot in the playoffs through the end of the season. And hopefully MF gets ND over the hump and they start winning some big games. I also expect an uptick in the overall recruiting, MF has shown he can do this on the defensive side.

Yes the schedule looks tough for next year, but season to season there are always teams that disappoint. If a team had Clemson, Florida, North Carolina, Southern Cal, Wisconsin and LSU on their schedule heading into this season, it would have appeared to be setting up for a really tough slog. But every single one of those teams had a down year, some worse than others. My point is it is difficult to say with any certainty just how difficult a schedule will be before any games are played.

I want MF to succeed because his success is ND's success. The bonus is that he certainly seems a very personable and dynamic guy. There's no rule that sez you have to be an a**hole to be successful.

22 hours ago, USAFA03_HUGENDFAN said:

Best case - 10-2 (Ls to OSU and Clemson)

Most likely - 9-3 (another L to USC, BYU, or UNC)

Worst case - 6-6 (Ls to  all mentioned above and Cal or BC) 

If either of the first two scenarios happens then a Top 10 recruiting class and continued improvement. If the Worst Case occurs then the recruiting class will imploded and it will be a long rebuilding process.

As MJ in the new Spider-Man says repeatedly throughout movie (or my mantra for the past 30+ yrs) prepare for the worst and then you can’t be disappointed. 

No way they go 6-6.  That would be a massive let down, new coach or not.  I'm not too worried about UNC or BYU.  I think the Irish will fair just fine with them.  While I do think USC will be better than they've been, I don't think this is the season they ascend just yet.  I'm excited to see how everything pans out.  

40 minutes ago, NYGoldenDomer said:

No way they go 6-6.  That would be a massive let down, new coach or not.  I'm not too worried about UNC or BYU.  I think the Irish will fair just fine with them.  While I do think USC will be better than they've been, I don't think this is the season they ascend just yet.  I'm excited to see how everything pans out.  

Yes it’s unlikely but possible.  As Jimbo said teams can have down years. Who’s to say that next year isn’t a down year for ND.  I had worse case initially at 7-5 but I thought if they get to 4 or 5 losses that some on the team will give up on the season and thus an extra loss.  I’d be pleased with 9-3 or better but I do not think 12-0 is remotely possible. The team is not equipped to compete with OSU yet. 

12 minutes ago, USAFA03_HUGENDFAN said:

Yes it’s unlikely but possible.  As Jimbo said teams can have down years. Who’s to say that next year isn’t a down year for ND.  I had worse case initially at 7-5 but I thought if they get to 4 or 5 losses that some on the team will give up on the season and thus an extra loss.  I’d be pleased with 9-3 or better but I do not think 12-0 is remotely possible. The team is not equipped to compete with OSU yet. 

I haven’t given up on 12-0 yet for next year. Oregon beat OSU this year early in the season maybe next year it’s ND turn.