Marcus Freeman details how Notre Dame will avoid Las Vegas distractions

Notre Dame will return to action this week with a cross-country trek to Las Vegas to take on No. 16 BYU at Allegiant Stadium, leaving coach Marcus Freeman to ponder how he can help Notre Dame avoid Las Vegas’ distractions.

His hope? A structured schedule will take care of most of those concerns.

“We’ve got to do a good job,” Freeman said. “We’re not going to get out there in time to experience any of the distractions that I think Las Vegas can present.”

Given that Notre Dame is coming from the eastern time zone and playing all the way out in the pacific time zone, there will be a three-hour difference for players to adjust to. And with the game at night, that presents extra challenges making sure players are alert still for a 7:30 p.m. local kick in Las Vegas on Saturday. It’ll feel like a 10:30 p.m. start for the Irish.

Coaches will have to be intentional about extending the Friday evening programming to help players adjust accordingly.

“We’re going to get there and be very strategic on what we do,” Freeman said. “Go to the stadium, I want them to see Allegiant Stadium, spend a little bit of time there. Go straight to the hotel, have dinner, we’ll have some time together, a normal meeting that we have on Friday nights and they’re going to go to bed.”

Can Las Vegas kick start Notre Dame’s season?

While for Notre Dame Las Vegas distractions are certainly a concern, the unique game against a ranked opponent could also be a second launch point for the 2022 season in Freeman’s first year in charge.

Things certainly didn’t begin the way the Fighting Irish would have liked.

A loss at Ohio State in the season opener was followed by a much more humbling defeat at home against Marshall, sending Notre Dame tumbling out of the AP Top 25 altogether. The Fighting Irish have clawed their way back to .500 since, beating both California and North Carolina.

Now, following a bye week, there’s a chance for Notre Dame to string together a third consecutive victory against a quality opponent.

That is, if Freeman and his crew can manage the distractions and the time difference.

“We have to remember that our bodies are used to Eastern Standard Time, so we’re going to try to get them to bed at a decent hour and wake them up at a decent hour to get us ready for the game on Saturday,” he said.

The game will be carried nationally with a broadcast on NBC, while it will be streamed on Peacock.