Chat Transcript: Is the Notre Dame defensive improvement real? Sustainable?

Eric Hansen: Welcome to Notre Dame Football Live Chat, Boise State Edition.

Some quick programming notes:

► On July 1, Tyler James and I made the move to the On3 network and blueandgold.com and joined some amazing teammates. It’s proven to be a great move for us and, I believe, for our subscribers as well. And we’ve got a special limited-time offer for new subscribers. Sign up for blueandgold.com now for a year and get it for $1 a week. That’s $52 for an entire year of our Notre Dame sports coverage, plus all the value you get from a national team of writers and content creators, as well as access to every team site in the On3 network.

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► The Inside ND Sports Podcast has been rebranded as the Third & Gold Podcast. Going forward the pod will be available on all the podcast places you found us before as well as our YouTube Channel. On our most recent episode, we caught up with former Irish All-America nose guard Chris Zorich, who talked about Irish head coach Marcus Freeman wanting to add Zorich to the 2025 roster, godson and Notre Dame recruiting target Brayden Parks and his recruitment, reuniting with former Notre Dame coach Lou Holz and much more. This week’s podcast drops Thursday with special guest Lamar Mickey, the father of former Notre Dame cornerback Jaden Mickey, now a member of the Boise State football team that visits Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday.

► Finally at WSBT Sports Radio 960, I’m part of the Notre Dame Football pregame shows with Tim Grauel, Jim Irizarry and Blue & Gold teammate Tyler Horka. The new expanded show kicks off with 3 1/2 hours of news, analysis and special guests live from the iconic Linebacker Lounge in South Bend on Saturday ahead of the Boise State game. We’ll start our coverage at 11 a.m. ET. You can listen locally at WSBT-AM 960, Sunny 101.5 FM and 106.1 FM in Southwest Michigan. And it will be live streaming on wsbtradio.com.

As far as this week’s chat …

PLEASE include your NAME and HOMETOWN along with your question(s).

Please limit the math involved within your questions to something a third-grader could handle.

Here are what the rules are, but we’re rescinding every one of them but the No Spitting rule this week for good behavior:

Eric Hansen: OK, let’s roll.

Paul from Knoxville: Ciao Eric! Thank you for the opportunity to submit questions before the chat, as I am seldom able to join it live, but I always enjoy reading the transcripts. My question regards the defense and in particular whether, or how much, the Arkansas game really revealed substantial improvement. I am not sure. Our D was likely helped by the score getting out of hand so quickly and, I suspect, AR having to adjust its game plan. Plus, the first 2 AR drives were stopped on third downs by dropped passes, so I wonder whether two early TDs might have changed the complexion of the game and not just the final score. Am I being overly skeptical?  I would welcome your thoughts on the level of improvement you observed. Thanks!

Eric Hansen: Paul, given my Italian heritage on my mom’s side, that’s a great opener. Ciao to you as well. And it’s a really good place to start. Two things of note to set the stage. Arkansas came into that game having scored 28 points or more in THE FIRST HALF of all four of its previous games. They got 13 for the entire game vs. ND. And they had never been below 500 total yards in a game. ND held them to 365. I also think Bobby Petrino, for all his other faults, is one of the better offensive coordinators in college football. And now he’s the interim head coach. So let me give you my reasons that the defensive effort should be sustainable and then one caveat.

Notre Dame was finally able to generate a pass rush. Huge. Against a team that doesn’t give up many sacks. The coverage benefitted from that, and still without Leonard Moore made some big strides in the back end. They got better as the game went on. The position group that I am waiting to see surge are the linebackers. But Arkansas presented a very balanced offense, with the best QB that ND will face this season — past or upcoming — except for USC’s Jayden Maiava, per ESPN. Maiava is No. 1 among Power Conference QBs through the first month of the season, with CJ Carr 7th. Arkansas still is ranked in the top 10 in total offense and top 10 in third-down conversions.

The caveat is there are a lot of really powerful passing offenses still to come as well as the schematic curveball from Navy. Add to that, football isn’t static. You’re constantly evolving, adapting, counterpunching .. .and if you’re not people will figure you out and form a template for everyone else to follow. So, Saturday’s performance should be looked at as a really encouraging start and not the destination. But I feel good about that progress.

Skip from Houston: Would you please discuss the “nickel” position – where does he play, responsibilities, ideal body type, etc.?  Thank you.

Eric Hansen: Hi Skip. The nickel is a defensive back position. In conventional base offenses, there is no nickel. He’s a fifth defensive back. However, more and more nickel is the new base defense, and Notre Dame is no exception. So instead of three linebackers and four DBs, you’re going to get 2 linebackers and 5 DBs most of the time. In man defense, the nickel is usually lined up defending the other team’s slot receiver. So you’re looking for a DB with elite speed and cutting ability.

You can use a corner or a safety as your nickel. ND typically likes safeties with cornerback speed in that role, because they don’t want to sacrifice the physicality. That way the nickel is not a soft spot in the defense on running plays.

Matt from Austin: Hello Eric, as always, thank you for all of your help and insights. I hope you’re having a great week! It was actually enjoyable watching the Arkansas game! (watched it with my old roommate. Shout out to Sorin Hall ’83). A couple of quick questions. Is there any chance in your mind that our improved play from both lines and our defensive backs might be “fools gold”. We were favored by 4 1/2 and won by 43. I’m hoping that the improvement was due to scheme change and coaching, but also have a sense that Arkansas wasn’t as good as predicted. Any thoughts? What will need to continue improving upon in the next week or two, other than consistent performance? Lastly, is ND becoming a victim of voter fatigue in the polls? Large wins with little or no movement in our ranking. Thanks Eric. Sorry for being long winded.

Eric Hansen: Hi Matt and thanks so much for your email. I keep up with reading them pretty well. As far as answering, I refuse to turn that over to AI and so I am under water. … To your questions. I just addressed the defense, so let me touch on the other things here. Yes, I think the O-line progress is real, though Arkansas’ defensive front has not been impressive. Still, when you look at execution, toughness and cohesion, there have been steps in the right direction. As far a poll fatigue, no I don’t think that’s the case and I don’t think it’s problematic in the long term — as long as Notre Dame keeps winning and keeps improving.

The Irish are the ONLY two-loss team in the polls. And as more teams get that second loss  or even their first one, the Irish will move up. Especially if the defense starts making consistent progress. That’s probably where some voters are skeptical. One thing to note is yes, you can jump other teams that win and win big. But if they have fewer losses, it’s harder to justify at this point in the season. But conference play is heating up, and there are going to be a lot of ranked teams playing each other. Patience.

Ced Walker from Saginaw michigan aka sagnasty Saginaw pride: great victory Notre Dame  beating arkansas  if ND  don’t make what is the most likely bowl game Notre Dame go to if we don’t make the playoffs  God Bless This Football Team here come the irish trust the process the golden standard rally we are nd god country go irish love thee notre dame our mother pray for us

Eric Hansen: Hi Ced. If Notre Dame falls short of the Playoff, the most likely destination is one in which the bowl’s trophy actually doubles as a functional toaster. Dead serious. It’s the Pop-Tarts Bowl, Dec. 27 in Orlando.

Manny from San Pedro: Eric!!!!!!!!!! My man!!!!  Where has this offense been all my life.  I truly felt we could have scored 70 if we wanted!!! Does ND need to blow out everyone like this to get in the playoffs because USC isn’t helping our SOS. If we run the tables. Odds of making the playoffs over or under 40%

Eric Hansen: Manny!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The interesting thing about the offense is that it doesn’t face a team ranked in the top 25 in total defense — and only two in the top 50 — or in the top 35 in pass defense the rest of the season. What ND needs to show is improvement, not leaving the No. 1 offense in ’til the final seconds tick off and running up the score. The national media was impressed more by ND’s defense showing improvement than the final margin (56-13) this past Saturday. If ND goes 10-2, I really like its chance of the Irish being in the playoff. And on our Sunday roundtable show on YouTube, I set my expectation of going 10-2 at 71 percent. Yes, 71 percent.

Shamrock Sushi from Tokyo: Hello esteemed gentlemen! If ND gets more opposing coaches fired, do you think the CFP will accept that as a valid data point? Thank you.

Eric Hansen: THIS is my type of question. Love it. If you lived closer, I’d send you a fabulous prize. And the answer is, heck yeah, why not?

Kevin from Calgary, Canada: let me try one more time. The problem with your forum is if I hit return to end a paragraph it sends. So, from cannibalize (if I can remember what I stsrted

Kevin from Calgary: Eric, please talk me down from the ledge (figuratively not literally). There are currently five SEC teams without a loss and none of them are named Alabama, Georgia, LSU, or Tennessee. Obviously these teams will cannibalize each other to some extent, but there’s a good chance there are five SEC teams at 10-2 or better. Throw in the Big 10 likely having at least three playoff qualifiers, what are the chances (hopefully not slim or none) the Irish can qualify at 10-2? I’d hate to think our 2 1/2 game wait for Ash to figure out how to coach the D costs us a post season appearance. Thanks for the chats!

Eric Hansen: Hi Kevin. I think the space bar had you back on the ledge. It happens on this side too. What I do when I want to form paragraphs is hold down the shift key when I hit return for a soft return. I can ask the software folks about reprogramming that. … OK now get back inside and no more ledge surfing. To your questions. I think for every team, you control your destiny if you have 1 or zero losses or win your conference title. Once you hit that second loss, it’s a beauty contest. I do think there will be enough cannibalizing that the Irish will make the field at 10-2 provided they’re not edging Syracuse 41-35 and Stanford 12-10. And why I am confident is that I believe this team will improve over time. And thanks for being part of the chats!

Tony (2581) from Lexington, Ky. by way of my hometown of Somerset, Pa (also the hometown of ND baseball coach Shawn Stiffler): I just learned, Eric, that I can’t hit the “enter” key while typing my question… 😆 Is Aneyas Williams’ elbow injury contributing to his lack of playing time or is it just a matter of Love & Price being too good to take off of the field? As you know, Aneyas was a prime contributor – particularly on 3rd downs – last season. He was an excellent blocker, ran extremely hard, and, as Penn State learned, was a skilled receiver out of the backfield. I miss seeing him on the field this season – he plays with a passion and ferocity that ND certainly could use… Keep up your great work, Eric ! You’re the best!

Eric Hansen: Hi Tony, and thanks! ND running backs coach Ja’Juan Seider was actually the assistant coach in the media rotation on Tuesday night, and that question kind of came up and kind of didn’t. I was interviewing Mark Zackery at the time, so I didn’t get to participate, but I saw the transcript. So after that very long preamble, let me answer it. 1) Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price are too good to take out of the game at this point in the season when the score is close. As you saw, when it gets lopsided, Aneyas Williams, Nolan James and Gi’Bran Payne all got in. 2) Some of what Williams does best, Love and Price did not do well last year or at least to the level they do it now. Seider charged them with addressing their weaknesses in the offseason, and they have.

Love went from being a dangerous but inconsistent receiver to being a defensive coordinator’s nightmare. And Price went from a below-average blocker to an above-average one. Williams is a really good receiver and pass blocker. I would not be surprised to see him and James as the 1-2 punch next season.

Marie from Atlanta: Hi Eric, I hope you’re enjoying your week. I’m sure it’s nicer when the Irish have a big victory. The offense is really looking amazing, what is the next big step for the offense so that it can  be considered a consensus elite offense? I know everyone hopes the team keeps rolling against Boise State this weekend, but what are some problems that Boise State could present and what are the key matchups for the game? It’s a little too early in the season for me to be asking for grades but I will ask for the grade of just one coach. What grade would you give Mike Brown so far this year? As always, thanks so much for hosting the chat and all the great insights.

Eric Hansen: Hi Marie. Yes, people are happier and use more exclamation points after a big win!!!!! Even me. But you keep bringing the heat with your good questions, and that’s welcome too. Let’s unpack them. 1) I think it’s more subtle steps than big steps. CJ Carr had about a 1/4 of the playbook he has now vs. Miami. He’s also getting better and better at the line of scrimmage, pre-snap, which is huge. And he’s learning from his mistakes instead of repeating them. The O-line is improving. The WRs are improving. I think you’ll see the tight ends beyond Raridon get more involved in mid October and beyond. So there will be more gears to this offense, if you will.

2) Here’s where Boise State is good and here’s where they are vulnerable. The good: Very balanced offense, 20th nationally in rush offense, 20th in passing offense. Good on third down, don’t turn the ball over, have protected their QB and they get after the passer pretty well on defense. They’re a good turnover margin team. The bad? Rush defense. Scoring defense, Third-down defense. The Ugly? One of the worst red zone teams on both sides of the ball.

3) I think Mike Brown went into this past offseason and this season as an assistant coach with something to prove — on the recruiting trail and on the sideline. Given his performance in both, he gets an ‘A’ from me.

Kevin from Sleepy Eye, Minn.: Hansen’s the MAN!! How is Jagusah coming along?  When will he return and how the line evolve when that happens?

Brian Hockney: Will Charles Jagusah be available for the playoffs?

Roger: Eric: Thanks for chatting!! What do you hear about Charles Jagusah’s apparent setback?  With Guerby Lambert playing well and the O-line showing better, albeit against lesser competition in Purdue and Arkansas, I was looking for his return as a starter to create O-line depth with whomever he replaced. With 2024 O-line injuries requiring lots of depth, which existed in 2024, what is your observation concerning current 2025 Irish O-line depth? Also on the injury front, what is the prognosis for Leonard Moore’s return?  GO IRISH!!

Eric Hansen: OK a trifecta of Charles Jagusah questions (and there are more). Well, Kevin/Brian/Roger … So, let me hit the main thrust of them here and then get to some of the tangents in Roger’s question. As I mentioned in this Intel piece yesterday for subscribers — Irish Intel: CJ Carr’s next step, Notre Dame O-line injury setback, bringing the fire — Jagusah suffered a setback in his recovery from the broken left humerus he suffered in July. And he had to have a surgical procedure to have that cleaned up. There’s more detail in the story, as well as some other cool insider stuff, but Notre Dame has not ruled him out for the season/postseason.

As far as depth, there’s some very good talent, but some of the best tackle depth is being used in the interior, with Guerby Lambert now a starting guard and freshman Will Black having spent all of training camp there and likely sticking inside for now. True freshman Matty Augustine and redshirt freshman Styles Prescod are the backup tackles right now, and very inexperienced. As far as cornerback Leonard Moore, we’ll get an update from Marcus Freeman on him Thursday at around noon ET.

Jeremy from Goshen: Hi Eric! W@$$UP? Question, drawing on your skills as a youth football coach and general knowledge of the college football game. If you were a defensive coordinator how would you try and defend the elite Irish offense?

Eric Hansen: Well Jeremy (I forgot initially to say W@$$UP back), if you know anything about that age group, there are not a lot of quarterbacks who can consistently upgrade the forward pass beyond looking like a fumble in the air. So, knowing that, I took my strong safety and moved him around the defensive formation, sometimes even as an extra pass rusher. That wouldn’t fly against Mike Denbrock. Against ND, I would really try to mix up my looks and coverages, but I would lean into slowing the run game down. My only chance to slow them down overall would be to get them in third-and-longs and then mix blitzes with dropping eight to try to confuse CJ Carr. And if all that sounds like it might not work, well it didn’t work for Arkansas either and those purged coaches on defense and head coach Sam Pittman are as likely to coach a college team this weekend as I am.

Tanker from Dulce, N.M.: Hey Eric! I hope all is well with you! Curious if you anticipate any additions to the current 26 recruiting class or if the hay is essentially in the barn on that front?

Eric Hansen: Hi Tanker. We do not anticipate any additions or deletions. The Irish coaching staff is putting a lot of energy into the 2027s right now.

Ryan from Frankfort, Ill.: Good Afternoon Eric what do you think about the play of CJ Carr i think he has looked good this Season I’m thinking Irish win 42-21 or something like that this weekend GO IRISH ☘️☘️☘️🏈🏈🏈

Eric Hansen: Hey Ryan, CJ Carr, with a pass-efficiency rating of 181.1 is on a pace to shatter the school single-season record of 161.4. which was set in 1949 by Bob Williams and matched in 2009 by Jimmy Clausen. I am just as impressed as you are. Thanks for the score prediction.

Tom F from Kennesaw, Ga.: Good Afternoon Eric. Some quick questions: 1) how do you think Carr will do against the aggressive BSU defense? Why?  2) The 3 frosh DBs look very good.  Please rank them 1 thru 3 as of today and then 1 thru 3 as you think they will be at the start of 2026.  I think once Johnson adds about 10 pounds he is going to be very good.  3) Liked seeing Talich’s INT as we finally got a Safety to play over the top.  What is your take on the safeties pass defense so far?  Getting better??  Thanks for answering our questions and as always, GO IRISH !!!!!

Eric Hansen: Hi Tom. Thank YOU. 1) CJ Carr has been very good when teams blitz and pressure him, which is why my answer to Jeremy reads like Gibberish. I still think it’s the best approach, or at least mixing it in, but where CJ has gotten very good very fast is sliding protections at the line of scrimmage. Redshirt freshmen usually can’t do that by themselves and to that level. 2) Oh man, talk about upside for all three. In terms of today’s snapshot: 1) Tae Johnson, 2) Mark Zackery, 3. Dallas Golden.

At the start of 2026, I think Tae Johnson is a future All-American, so he stays No. 1. Zackery and Golden are 2A and 2B. Really impressed with all of them. Interviewed Zackery last night for a feature. VERY impressive kid. 3) Johnson becoming a starter is the key move here. Luke Talich is now the third safety and playing well. Adon Shuler is surging. Jalen Stroman is productive, needs more consistency. Remember he missed almost all of last season, so I expect him to improve as well. I like that position group a lot. And JaDon Blair and Ethan Long aren’t even in the rotation yet.

Scott from Greenville, S.C.: Guten Tag Eric!

Eric Hansen: Guten Tag Scott, and a Gluten-free Wednesday to you too!

Scott from Greenville. S.C.: Hey Eric, sorry I hit the wrong button. I usually push all the wrong buttons for my wife too. Hopefully ND hits all the right buttons on Saturday! Do you think ND made the turn last week, like they did against Purdue last year? There is still a lot of growing on both sides of the ball to be done. Mostly defensive. Do you see continued growth this week by the D-line? Also, do the young guns in the secondary continue to make strides and allow Ash and Freeman the luxury of taking Moore and Gray out for a series or more to rest? I hope October starts the way September ended. Love your work Eric. You keep writing and I’ll keep reading. Way better than Dickenson or Checkov.

Eric Hansen: Scott, if you are asking me how to push the right buttons in your initial reference, that is above my pay grade and will probably get you demoted to the couch! To your football questions …  The injuries to both DeVonta Smith (who’s back) and Leonard Moore (who may be soon), I believe, will help ND in the long run, because Dallas Golden and Mark Zackery will be able to provide quality depth. Now in terms of turning the corner, the answer is more kind of than yes. There’s still work to be done, but I think given the matchups with the remaining teams, this is going to be a team still driven by the offense.

Not that I think the defense will be a long-term liability, but ND faces way better offenses week to week than it does from opposing defense. In a playoff scenario, they’ll start to see teams that do both very well. I appreciate the compliments and like that you didn’t compare me to Seuss!

Tim from Atlanta: Hi Eric! Appreciate your question about the fall camp “mirage” to Freeman last week. That was a great way of putting it. What were they seeing if not a mirage? I’m wondering about his specific comments at the time regarding Jason Onye– as well as the defensive line as a whole– which were incredibly bullish especially for Freeman. What’s your take on this misapprehension combined with the uncommon praise? Is Onye hurt? Or is he more of a practice standout rather than a “gamer” given his lack of meaningful snaps? Seems like more praise should have been directed to Mullens, Rubio, and Hughes!

Eric Hansen: Hi Tim, and thanks. What we all miss from the outside looking in sometimes is the fact that these players are real people with real lives and problems, and not video game avatars. And when I say “we”, I included myself as guilty of that. Jason Onye missed a ton of football last season, worked his way back from mental health issues and I think legitimately had a strong spring and August. But progress isn’t always a straight line, especially when the bright lights come on again. This happens with injuries too. Sometimes there are immense mental hurdles in coming back from those. Eli Raridon, who finally transcended his, shared that with me this summer. But it was a long process for him. And sometimes these human elements, under the spotlight of increased scrutiny and stakes, take more time to work through and contribute to the mirage.

Not all of it, and not collectively mind you. I still think there’s some good self-scouting ahead for Marcus Freeman and the coaching staff to refine that preseason process to get a better gauge of what needs fixed next August.

Barry from Napa, Calif.: Eric, first apologies for calling you Steve on my Q a few weeks back. Might have been the Napa wine but actually have a friend who shares your last name but obviously not your first! Thinking back to last year, our defense would often struggle the first series or two and then clamp down. I assume that was great adjustments by Golden. Seems to me Ash wasn’t able to do likewise until Arkansas. Do you agree and why do you think that is? Am sure if we had solutions we’d be coaching but how utterly frustrating if this apparent “fix” or in-game adjustments aren’t real.

Eric Hansen: Steve!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I kid. I kid, Barry. No wine here today. Just coffee. I love my Keurig machine. You are forgiven. You are right — Al Golden was VERY good at the in-game adjustments. Chris Ash has been pretty good at halftime, at least the past couple of games. I would say that he needs to be graded on a curve, due to the difficulty of defending Arkansas, but Boise, NC State, USC, Boston College … the strong offenses and really good QBs keep coming. But last week, in totality, was progress, even with all the yeah-buts. It was. So, let’s see if there is more this week and then we can drill deeper on this.

Jonathan from Addison, Texas: Eric!!! Do you think it’s a measure of dominance when the opposing team lets its head coach go after a blowout win? Can you remember, when has ND tipped that domino before? Any opportunities to do it again this season? I’m thinking interim Frank Reich is a gimme. Pat Narduzzi at Pitt seems like a possibility. How about Lincoln Riley?

Eric Hansen: Hi Jonathan! That’s actually happened the other way as well. I can remember having breakfast with then-ND athletic director Kevin White the day before ND played USC in 2004. And White assured me that Tyrone Willingham was coming back in 2005. One hundred percent. The problem was he wasn’t making that decision. And after ND got blown out by USC, Willingham was gone, and White had to answer questions by himself at a press conference about a decision he was AGAINST. I don’t think any of the other coaches on the schedule will make in-season changes, though that is becoming more and more prevalent across college football. You are on point with Frank Reich. He was named interim coach for this season only.

Len from the Jersey Shore: Hello Eric!!  As always,  thanks for hosting.  You, as well as others at B & G, have pointed out all the things that need to happen for a potential 10-2 ND team to make the CFP playoffs. ND needs to win, show that they are a top 10 team to the eye test (this allows two lower ranked conference champions to not leap frog them)  and have a myriad of teams lose multiple times and in a way to show they are not worthy of a top  10 ranking.  This one I have not heard any discussion on.  In your opinion, using your reasoning as an AP voter, should the committee take into consideration the ridiculous referee call on the A & M winning TD.  Should of been replayed as 4th and goal from the 21.  I think they should.  Maybe coaches on the committee will think the same way. Your thoughts are appreciated.

Eric Hansen: Hi Len!! Thanks for the question and the excessive punctuation. Always appreciated. I am going to have to give you a hard no on your question. If you’re going to factor in that missed call, then you need to go back over the tape and factor in EVERY missed call. No thanks and no bueno. And who’s to say, the way the ND defense was playing in that game, that A&M wouldn’t have still converted after the penalty was assessed from 10 yards further away? Now I think what’s fair to wonder if ND keeps improving is wondering if ND would win a rematch against the Aggies or Miami. I think that’s a fair scenario, but those wins still count and still matter.

Jack from Strongsville, Ohio: Hi Eric. From the home of the American League Central Division champs Cleveland Guardians but by the time this chat is concluded their season may also be concluded.  At 10-2 Notre Dame has no wiggle room and there should be no “trap game”. That being said, other than USC what are the most dangerous teams remaining on the schedule? Thanks as always for your and Tyler’s great work.

Eric Hansen: HI Jack, thank you! I just did a point-counterpoint with colleague Jack Soble on this topic, which is yet to be published, and I picked Pitt. Why? It’s on the road. The Panthers match up well with some of ND’s vulnerabilities … and because of schedule sequencing. It’s very tough to go from defending Navy’s modified triple-option one week at a high level, and then dive back into defending a pass-happy offense the next week without a bye. ND faced that last year going from Army to USC, and Al Golden was very candid afterward about how difficult that was.

Scott from Greenville, S.C.: Eric, thanks for answering my questions earlier. But I have a bigger one, birthday bash this weekend. Do I make “post lightning storm green beans” or fettuccine Alfredo or both? Any other suggestions?

Eric Hansen: Oh Scott, did you come to the right place! BOTH, and leave a place at the table for me. Unless, or course, that results in pushing one of those aforementioned wrong buttons. Then leave me out of it. But Happy Birthday to you or whoever’s birthday it is.

Shane from White Deer, Texas: Hey Eric. I hope all is well in your part of the world. I don’t know if you got the chance to see the story that was done on J Love.  If you did, do you think some of the story lines they hit on may explain why he did not nominate himself for team captain? I know when he wasn’t named a captain. Anyway, I thought that was a very nice piece.  Also, it seems like there were times Carr was going for a TD on two or three occasions when he could have played it safe and got the first down.  Has Denbrock given him this much leeway, or are these decisions all his own?  Personally, I like the confidence, but it makes me nervous.  Thanks for the chat. Go Irish!!

Eric Hansen: Hi Shane. Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on how you view it, I’m part of a 3-plus-hour pregame show myself, and it started last weekend at 8 a.m. — so, not a lot of time to take in other pregame content for me. I heard it was very good. So, let me get to questions I can answer from you … This is part of who CJ Carr and the Notre Dame offense are becoming. And while it might make you nervous now, the more-refined version, more-polished version is coming. But Carr’s arm talent matches his confidence, and the ability of the Irish receivers to get separation and/or win 50-50 balls is growing with him. His coaches do NOT want him to tap the brakes.

Michael from Hooksett, N.H.: Hi Eric-first time questioner here. Being one million percent honest, and being blunt, can you tell me what you think are the top 3 reasons why our beloved ND has not won a National Championship since 1988? And just a quick one. Are you happy that Brian Kelly left Notre Dame? I sure am!!

Eric Hansen: Michael, thanks for taking the question-portal plunge! So your first question is really good, but it is almost like asking me the meaning of life. It’s hard to boil that down to a short chat answer, so here’s my best stab at that: 1) The wrong coach for the years between Lou Holtz and Brian Kelly. 2. The wrong QB for most of the time between Rick Mirer and CJ Carr (not all, most), and when there were elite QBs, there wasn’t an athletic enough defense to pair with it.

3) An administration for many of those years that acted like headwinds for football but has now found the middle ground on some things to really get behind it. … Now to your Brian Kelly question. I liked working with BK and I also thought the way he left and his stated reason for doing so was pretty crappy and not entirely true. But his exit led to Marcus Freeman, who I do think will eventually lead ND to a title.

Andy from Wilmette via South Bend: Hello Eric!!+!  Thanks for answering our questions and squashing our worries.  CJ Carr looked pretty good and is looking better every game. Was the QB competition really that close?  If so, we probably have the best backup QB in the country. Also, are you aware of any nickname for CJC?  Sorry for my lame questions. My good questions usually come after reading your other chatters…they are really wise as are you. Peace and Go Irish!

Eric Hansen: Andy this is Eric from South Bend via Cleveland/Columbus, Ohio/Columbus Ind./Cedar Lake, IN … and really great question. The Kenny Minchey surge was real. And yes I think what the elongated QB competition did was not just produce one QB that could help ND get to a playoff, it produced two of them. I do think Minchey is that talented. But one of the things that separated CJ is what he can do presnap at the line of scrimmage. And that’s showing up big time.

Nicknames? There are all kinds of bad puns, I’m sure. I think that’s wide open, so maybe you could suggest one? Thanks … not lame questions at all. But you’re right, the chat-heads are amazing with the questions they come up with, that lots of times create great story ideas for me. So, I am grateful. (P.S.: I didn’t notice the !!+! In our question until I was putting together the transcript. WOW, that was well-played. Brilliant!!&!)

Jim from Shelburne, Vt.: Eric, happy to see you on more podcasts now.  What do you think will happen on the o line when Jagusah is back?

Eric Hansen: Hi Jim, and thanks for the positive YouTube review. … Since, as I mentioned before that Jagusah’s timeline got disrupted by the setback, let’s wait until he’s back practicing to answer this, because the state of the line might look a lot different at that point. However, If it were this week —- and it definitely is NOT — I’d plug him in at left tackle.

Don in Scottsdale: Eric!!!!!!!! Hope all is well. What do we need to see this week to believe the D is on the road to recovery?  The D performed better against a struggling Arkansas team.  What should we expect against a better coached team?  Keep up the good work and thanks for the chats!!!!!!!!!

Eric Hansen: Hi Don. Wait, where are my manners? !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! … Arkansas wasn’t struggling on offense before ND played them. In fact, they had chances to beat both Ole Miss and Memphis if they didn’t turn the ball over late. I’m telling you Taylen Green is a really, really good QB. I am optimistic the progress will continue on defense, but again they are playing some very high-powered offenses from now until they play Angeli-less Syracuse on Senior Day.

Bo Johnson: Michiana!!!  Will Chris Ash start using different linebacker sets for run plays vs. pass plays?  It sure seems like Bowen is out of place on a lot of pass plays or is this a learning curve teaching moment for Bowen?  And it’s great to have found my way back to these chats!

Eric Hansen: Bo, not only did you find your way here, you found your exclamation point key!!!!! Welcome! I don’t think it’s a matter of swapping out Drayk Bowen every time you anticipate a pass play, which also changes who’s communicating with Vhris Ash through the helmet communication and tips off the opposing offense on what you are anticipating and how you might defend them. I think your observation, though, is spot on. And I think the solution is to get Bowen comfortable in this scheme. He seems to be one of those who is struggling with it the most.

His coverage grade is roughly 35 points lower than last year, per Pro Football Focus. And his tackling grade is way, way down as well. I will add Madden Faraimo has earned a spot in the now five-man rotation, and he and KVA have been the best coverage linebackers consistently so far this season.

Ryan from Berkeley: Eric, thank you always for your weekly chats (and reasons to briefly blow off work). It was encouraging to see Gi’bran Payne get a few touches last week after a year-long injury and sticking it out with ND. He’s still not listed on this week’s depth chart, with freshman RB4 James ahead of him. I remember Payne being a kind of short-yardage, gadget player, but is his place on the depth chart a reflection of his injury recovery and niche role and/or is James (and RB3  Williams) just that much better? Does Payne still have a viable path to playing at ND?

Eric Hansen: Hi Ryan, do I need to write a note for your boss to excuse you for some very high-level football conversation. I’m willing to do that. The cook at our frat house in college, Winona Jean Winfield, used to write doctor’s notes for some of the guys on occasion and sign it Dr. W. Winfield. … in any event, to your question … the talent has just upgraded that much. And there’s more on the way coming in 2026 in Javian Osborne and Jonaz Walton. Gi’Bran Payne is playing pretty extensively on special teams, so there is a role for him there.

Tom F from Kennesaw, Ga.: Eric, speaking of defensive adjustments, my question involves complimentary football.  If the offense gets out to a big lead and has to pass a lot, do we have a defensive scheme to take advantage of that?  The Colts with Peyton Manning were built that way for the defense to play with the lead.  With that said, then do we have Plan B if it is a tight game and the opponent is not so pass happy, like Boise might be?  Thanks.  Go Irish!!!

Eric Hansen: Tom. I think I got turned around on your question and not sure who has the ball in this scenario. I’m guessing you are asking if the Irish can defend the run? I think they are just OK at that facet and getting incrementally better, but there’s room for improvement.

Eric Hansen: On that note, I am being chased by another commitment, so we’ll end here. Thanks for all the great questions, for not making me regret rolling back the No Drinking rule, for not being tempted to ask 17-part questions. We’ll be back next Wednesday at noon ET to do it all over again.