One-on-one with Notre Dame football coach Marcus Freeman

Marcus thanks so much for sitting down yeah absolutely all right so you're heading into your third season just how are you feeling heading into year three now you know I think there's you know there's the excitement you have going to any football season you know and and uh obviously this one would be different than the last two just because of the experience you have but um I'm excited I'm excited these guys work uh really hard and and you know you get a valuate off of 12 guarante opportunities but this time of of of preparation in the fall training camp is so critical to to produce the success that you want and so uh I'm excited to do it with this group of young people and this this great coaching staff and uh you know we just got to continue to prepare the right way and we'll get to the season here soon of course and I mean year three it's always talked about as that's the that's a big year for college coaches personally have you noticed anything different heading into this season I think every year you're going to be more experienced and every year you're going to um utilize that experience that you've had from the past to make sure you're better prepared for what's upcoming um but but yeah I can see why people say that just because of of year one you're trying to figure out what's the process that you you have to have to produce the desired results that you want year three you understand hey here's what you believe um our plan has to be to get the results we want how do we enhance it in certain areas how do we adapt and adjust and so I think your focus changes from year one to year three um but I believe it's going to change from year three to year five and so uh but it's exciting exting to be a part of and then one thing that's different for this year specifically is that quarterback position Riley Leonard bringing in him what have you just kind of seen through from him so far well I think Riley's a unbelievable competitor uh when he steps on the field steps between the white lines he is one of the most competitive individuals I've ever been around um but he's also a great teammate and uh that that to me is really important especially coming in as a transfer quarterback um you have to earn the trust of your teammates and then once you're Inn that trust you can become a great leader but he's an ultim a competitor great teammate and and his development to to be a great leader and you mentioned that the transfer this is the second straight season that you've opted for a transfer quarterback uh why specifically that position are you going looking to transfer portal well I think we were looking at number one was the numbers um that we had in that room and and if somebody transfers you want to make sure you can keep four guys on scholarship but for sure three and and uh we decided last season that hey we're probably going to have to bring in a transfer quarterback um as we look forward uh to the upcoming season and and it was the right decision and uh but we have a lot of confidence of all the quarterbacks in that room and uh that's the one thing that's a reflection of coach culi and and Coach Den brck our def offensive coordinator um they've created great culture um in that quarterback's room and and those guys are we say have healthy competition they're going to compete against each other but at the end of the day um they're going to make each other better but they're going to support the guy that's on the field and then not just the quarterback position but other positions as well you brought in nine transfers this this past off season just how have you kind of seen the transfer portal uh shape this roster over your three years here well I think our our focus is to to make sure we build our foundation in high school recruiting and um that's going to continue to be our Focus as we move forward but you know the transfer portal is a way that you can really um you know attack deficiencies you believe you have in your current roster how can we enhance it how can we uh make this position better and that's where we utilize a transfer portal um but again our philosophy movement continue is going to continue to be his high school recruiting of course and then one part of the ball one area where you have a lot of guys coming back is on the defense you know guys like cross and Watts coming back I'm wondering what was the pitch to them hey come back for the 2024 season well I think that there is there's multiple different reasons why they decid to come back but ultimately they wanted to come here and and compete for a championship in their last year and to be a part of this football program in this University and that's ultimately why they came back and then I think there's indiv ual um goals of of improving your NFL draft stock and uh um being a part of a special defense but um I think the biggest thing for them was hey the opportunity to come back be a part of this football program for another year uh and compete for championships and then after that hey let's improve my NL draft stock another player I want to touch on is Jordan fa on one of the more interesting cases of of an athlete here at Notre Dame I mean how's that kind of been helping him balance the you know lacrosse and football I think that you know what Jordan has learned and we all learning is okay how how do you physically handle the demands that football presents and Lacrosse presents and and I think we've had a great plan with our Sports Performance staff and really communicating with each sport and okay what is he doing today there what can we do to supplement um what he's done uh with the physical demands of the other sport but he's a great competitor um he's a unbelievable athlete as you've seen um the the things he's done on the football field and on the lacrosse field and uh we're sure glad to have him part of this football team of course and now looking towards this season the schedule get started with a pretty tough first game does that change anything out of the gate having such a tough first opponent no not at all I think every year you you prepare to win and I don't care if your opponent is Ohio State my first year Navy to second year or Texas A&M the third you're going to prepare to to win and uh you know you got to make sure you're physically and mentally ready to go when when that opportunity presents himself but um we don't the the excitement of practicing um the way you practice to me really doesn't change now schematically it will change because of Navy last year they have a different offense but um you're going to prepare to win you get 12 guaranteed opportunities and no matter who that opponent is you're going to prepare to win that game and then another one of those 12 opportunities is the game against Army at Yankee Stadium such a historical game coming 100 years after the first Notre Dame National Championship what does it mean to you to coach and take part in a game like that well it's exciting um anytime you get a chance to to play a game and Yankees Stadium that's historic uh just the the the the greatness and the history and the Excellence that comes with that program is something that's so special and then you know play army who we've played for many years and to to play Army in the 100e reunion um of that first game is is is exciting it's it's uh it's it's something that really you look back in history reminds you of the opportunity you have to to be a part of it now um but I'm sure when it gets here we we'll be ready to roll but um that opportunity to play in that stadium is going to be fun should be a really cool one to play a football game there oh yeah and then this season's also a new season in college football in general the 12 team playoff how does that maybe change your mindset heading into this year well I don't again I don't think the mindset changes so much in terms of as I said earlier you're you're preparing to win every game you play um but you have to make sure you find ways to continue to develop the depth of your team and that those young guys are contined developed um cuz you don't know when you're going to need them talking about the the opportunity maybe having 16 games instead of 12 and you have to make sure because of injuries because of of anything that is unforeseen in the future you have to make sure you're ready to go and and then that that period between uh week 12 and week um you know 14 uh you have to make sure that you have a great plan for for that period we don't play in a a championship game which is that week 13 game so we got to make sure our plan um is ready to go now uh for when that that opportunity would come you can't wait to see if you've made the playoffs to start preparing for that and so um that's something that we've really spent some time thinking about how do we want to prepare from the end of the season to the start of the playoffs because that week 14 is going to be coming up right on December 20th December 21st and in that first round you could possibly be hosting a playoff game if every all the cards fall right what would that mean to host a playoff game here at no Dame Stadium wow it'll be historic it'll be exciting right and not only do we hope it's it's snowing and we're playing you know under the white snow but it's cold but a chance to to have our wonderful fans and you know those students in the stadium for a home playoff game um that's going to be a sight to see and so uh we got to make sure we put ourselves an opportunity give ourselves opportunity to do that but um to be able to to have a home playoff game would be an awesome an awesome opportunity could be a good Advantage for the team from down south yeah amen amen going back to year three and I want to ask over these past couple years how have you maybe seen the program if you you were to look if you were to do that year year one to now year three how would that have looked different that first year now looking into year three well I think number one it starts with with your your players right your players have changed from year one to year three and and you know every year the challenge is to take this group of talent whoever this group is and to develop it and to to give yourself as an individual and as a football program a chance to reach his full potential and and that's the the ultimate Challenge and and and then you added the schematic element to it and okay how can we make sure our scheme um is giving our offense our defense our special teams the best opportunity uh to have success and so um it's a great challenge that's the challenge of of college football and um but but but that's probably the biggest difference right is that the talent is different who those people are are different in in year three to year one um how we develop them right the the the process has has changed maybe in certain areas not not drastically but there's certain areas that you've changed maybe in terms of how you prepare this group um but then you got to go out there and do it and that's the challenge is that hey can this group perform at that highest level when it matters the most and and that's what to me that process truly hopefully entails that you have a great process that when they go out there and it matters and it and it counts for for wins and losses that they're performing at its highest level and then when you look at this third season what would success to you this season be what would that what are you what are you judging maybe yourself or just this team by in this third season yeah I don't you know I don't look for for end goals you know I don't focus on that we we we focus on reaching our full potential that's to me what success would be is that does this this group perform at this level we believe it can perform at and that turn how do you measure that right are they playing with Clarity are they playing with speed are they clear on what they need to do are they playing fast are they playing physical right are we making as little of of mental errors as possible because they know exactly what is theand it from them from their coach and so if we do that there's going to be a lot of success as if we continue to do that the result of that going to be a lot of success but but that's what we got to focus on it's not hey let's go 12 and0 11 And1 maybe like it's can we focus can we prepare can we reach our full potential and stay in this moment and stay in this day and we'll look back and say man look what look what has has come across this this crazy season and then this schedule you know you're traveling around a lot of neutral site games home home and way how do you kind of keep that team how do you kind of keep the team focused like you said on that week by week and not let anything you know you come back from Atlanta or something you a hiccup I think my messaging has to be consistent in terms of of of what I say to him but then they got to make the choice right we we have a saying around here your choices reflect what your value if you truly believe that staying present staying in the moment is what matters to to have success then you'll make that choice to do it and so at it some point like you have as an individual have to make that choice to make make sure you're eliminating as many distractions as you can because there there's distractions all over the place and we have to make sure we're doing that but my message to the group has to be consistent when I preach hey stay in the moment eliminate distractions this is what it's going to take to have success right stop worrying about the future don't worry about the past you learn from the past but you stay in the present and if we can do that then um we'll have a lot of success of course and then part of that messaging coming from this coaching staff there's some new faces on the coaching staff this year including offensive coordinator Mike Den Brock can you talk a little bit about bringing him in and how this offense is looking yeah uh obviously coach Den Brock we spent four years together at Cincinnati so we have a lot of uh familiarity with each other and he did a great job at LSU over the past two years and the chance to bring him back to Notre Dame was was was a great opportunity the one that he obviously accepted and so um he's done a great job in his six months here seven months here in terms of just getting this group to to understand what his expectations are um in terms of his standards like how we practice how we prepare um but also understanding the schematic aspect of what he needs them to do and and but that's a training clamps for training camps for us is to how can we make sure that we're giving our guys Clarity in terms of what we demand and what we expect from them and when they're not practicing to that standard we're holding him accountable and so um he's done a great job of of really uh figuring out hey who are the guys on this offense that I believe will help us have success and then put them in positions to have success success you know he didn't come in here and say this is my scheme how do you fit it it's okay let me evaluate the Personnel who are the strengths of this offense and how can we find ways to put them in position to have success and then this offense we already talked about Riley Leonard but you know new guys on the outside like Bo Collins Chris Mell wide receiver Jeremiah Love and the backfield getting more touches this year I mean how has that process kind of been a lot of new pieces a lot very quickly in a new offense how's that process been scheming around those specific players yeah it's been it's been good it's uh something that takes time time right uh but but I think all those names you just mentioned have' all bought into this University and this football program and that's what you need them to do is to still put the greater good of Notre Dame football in front of them yourself and uh they've done that and uh that's what I'm excited for they're they're all Playmakers we're going to have to find ways to get the ball in their hands um but that's a great problem to have that is a good problem but I I do want to touch on another another problem the offensive line you dealt with injury there recently and then you lost a couple players to the draft I mean how do you kind of make sure that position group is ready to go when it comes to week one with all this turnover yeah that's that's the goal of any coach right is to make sure they're ready to go and in terms of how you prepare them but but there's that's why you have depth right we recruit great players here and and not all of them get a chance to play right away and uh there's a lot of players in that room that can can really get done what we expect out of them and so I'm excited for whoever those five guys are going to be when we take the field versus Texas A&M um I know we have overly qualified individuals in that room that can can perform uh what will be asked of them uh when it matters the most but right now we got to continue to make sure that we're doing the things in practice to give them a chance to have that success when we get down to Texas A&M you kind of mentioned there the high school recruiting having the depth I mean that's something we talked about a little bit earlier is how important is high school recruiting specifically to building up to a championship roster even with the transfer portal nowaday it's so crucial for us right every place is different but for us it's so crucial um because one of the greatest strengths we have is the love for not Notre Dame right the love for this place and uh that's hard to just develop when you just transfer here for 6 months like that's developed over time and so we have to make sure we're getting kids here that want to be here want to develop um believe in this University and what it can do for you but also believe in this football program and what can this University what can this football program do for these kids well I think as a football program that you give them a chance to reach their goals right is that you know whatever their goals they may have um we want to make sure we give them an opportunity to reach that now how do you do that by reaching full potential if you reach your full potential we'll see if that's good enough to to take you to the NFL to to win the Championships that we all aspire to have but what this universe can do for you is is tremendous right and then we have an unbelievable Network our education is so special um the alumni uh this place is going to to give you an opportunity to have success for the rest of your life once you go through it and so that's the opportunity that they have in front of them for sure and then we keep mentioning you know your year three how have you maybe felt more connected to Notre Dame now several years on the job well it didn't take me long to figure out how special this place is and um you know I think more than anything it's the relationships you get to build with people around here that's what I've been able to do over the course of the last three years is develop more relationships um but I knew right away um how special this place is and I get a chance to see it over and over and over when when I get a chance to speak to people or see it through our players uh it's a special special place and then I want to touch on something in the QB room again you brought in a high-profile guy like CJ Carr we talked a little about Riley Leonard and bringing in transfer QBs how do you kind of in that quarterback room meld the personalities of having you know guys coming up through high school but also bringing in a transfer what's called health healthy competition right is that all those guys competing against each other are going to bring out the best in them and it's also understanding that there's delay gratification and you know I know it's a challenge for many people that are so used to instant gratification but you have to Value delayed gratification you have to Value choosing hard today and the hard work of today um might not give you the rewards you want today but guess what if you do it today the future is is extremely bright but you have to understand there's there's a lot of hard work from now until then um to get that and so uh I think that's the biggest thing that that that that quarterback's room and all of our young players older players have to understand that you have to Value delay gratification because instant gratification doesn't happen with with major success and then I mean you've been coaching in college now you know as assistance for a while now have you noticed pitching that delayed gratification is that harder these days with things like the transfer portal in the sport uh I think again is it harder um yeah I think because of the transfer portal um there is an opportunity when when when things get hard to say okay maybe there's a better path uh but but that's our job that's our job as coaches is to to have relationships with young people and to to make sure they understand what the future holds for them at the place they're at especially here and so um if we don't do a good job guess yeah we'll we'll lose a lot of guys but I believe we have the right coaches that spend so much time investing in young people and developing relationships that those young people understand and can trust the coaches when we say those things I say is that how you're able to keep trying to retain people on your roster these days when there is the option to to go somewhere else 100% is relationships it's relationships and trust and that takes time it's it's intentional it's hard to build easy to lose but if you have a great relationship you have that trust uh you'll be able to keep those young people here if it's what's right for them of course of course and then you know speaking of relationships as a former player yourself how does that help you build these relationships with these players I think just knowing that listen I've been through what we're asking you to do um I know the demands of being a college football player um being a student athlete I know what it takes to to to go on to the NFL um but I also want you to understand that there's challenges that you need to face and there's there's times you need to be challenged to get outside your comfort zone if you want to reach those ultimate goals and so they have to trust me when I'm challenging them and when we challenge them to to do things that might not be so comfortable that the result of that's going to be tremendous success going into this season just what is the overall message to this team heading to 2024 stay in the moment win the moment very clear don't don't worry about the future we learn from the past stay in the moment win the moment of course thank you so much Marcus aw thank you meeting you appreciate it thank you guys