Chat Transcript: Putting interest in Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman in perspective

Eric Hansen: Welcome to a special early edition of Notre Dame Football Live Chat.

I have a coverage conflict today, but didn’t want to cancel, so here we are with a very full question queue, but keep ’em coming.

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 if you’re a potential first-time subscriber, you can take a one-week test drive for $1. That’s seven days of our premium content, 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. Check it out at: https://www.on3.com/teams/notre-dame-fighting-irish/join/

► If you missed the last episode of our aspiring-to-be-viral Notre Dame Football YouTube show, Football Never Sleeps, what are you doing with your life? Seriously, the show keeps its shelf life long after the live presentation, so you can catch up now or later on our YouTube channel.  We’ll be back next week and every week, Monday at 7 p.m. ET, for another presentation of Football Never Sleeps with Tyler James co-hosting with me. We’ll also have our Postgame Takeaways show for you to have with your Sunday morning coffee. And check out some great shows on the Blue & Gold YouTube channel as well.

► 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 safety Tom Zbikowski, currently the first-year head coach at Chicago St. Patrick High School. This week’s podcast drops on Thursday, and our special guest will be Notre Dame coaching icon Lou Holtz.

► Finally at WSBT Sports Radio 960, I’m part of the Notre Dame Football pregame show with Tim Grauel, Jim Irizarry and Blue & Gold teammate Tyler Horka. The new expanded GameDay 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 USC game. We’ll start our coverage at 3 p.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).

These were once the unbendable rules:

Eric Hansen: You can bend any of them this week, including the dreaded No Bare Feet rule.  All I ask is No 17-part questions and No manifestos.

Let’s get started.

Rui from Ossining, N.Y.: On3 is putting out information about Freeman and Penn State interest in pursuing him for their vacancy … we don’t need this right now … please put a stop to it ASAP lol. … Other than rooting for UMiami and A&M, what other teams do we need to “root” for to make sure that we get into the playoffs should we win out?
Eric Hansen: Hi Riu. There is an On3 national pundit who is talking about what coaches Penn State might be interested in, but context is important here. As Austin Powers once said, “I want a toilet seat of solid gold, but it’s just not in the cards, is it?” I think that pretty much sums up any thoughts of MUTUAL interest. … And I think it’s adorable you think I’m high enough on the On3 food chain to put a stop to that. But thank you. I’ll do my part by laughing with you. … I’ll try to simplify your question by saying, the better Miami, Texas A&M do and the better USC does after this week, the stronger case a 10-2 ND team would have. And you could say that about all the opponents. With very little common data points when comparing teams, something like now Arkansas does against the balance of its SEC schedule creates a perception. As far as other teams and their games that don’t involved ND directly, that’s migraine-inducing at this point to calculate that.

Manny from San Pedro: Eric!!!!!!!! Halloween is a few weeks away but hoping for no tricks Saturday night unless it’s us running trick plays on special teams.  What makes Freeman so confident in running these trick plays.  Is it scheme or he is that confident that if it fails our defense will set up?

Eric Hansen: Manny!!!!!!!!!!!!! Marcus Freeman is as invested as a head coach in special teams as there is in college football. In May, he and Marty Biagi spent a lot of time scheming things for this year, just to get a head start. He’s also created a culture where not only do the best players on the team play on special teams, THEY WANT special teams duty. They’re not doing so reluctantly. I had a chance to talk with special teams coordinator Marty Biagi last night.

His confidence in the play/concept and what he’s seen on film as a vulnerability in the opposition is the No. 1 reason for Marcus Freeman’s confidence. But increasingly the surge of the defense makes that a more comforting gamble to make.

John from Elkhorn, Neb.: Hey Eric – thanks a lot for the podcast with Zibby! Terrific! Living here in Nebraska, I was so glad he came to ND. I’m a follower now of St. Pats football. Would love to live next door to you and Mr. Zbikowski. Steaks on me. Hope you a get the “shark” on next. I am fortunate enough to get to one game a year as a 75 year old. Was at Boise State. Great health & happiness for your family.

Eric Hansen: John, thanks for listening and thanks for the compliments. And if you’re going to make steak for me, I’m going to put a For Sale sign in my neighbor’s yard. Or show him this note and get him to make me a steak. In any event, we’d love to get Jeff Samardzija on at some point this season. For this week, would you settle for Lou Holtz?

Dave from Ponte Vedra, Fla.: Great watching the young players improve from week to week.  On the other hand, Bryce Young has all but disappeared. What’s happened to him?

Eric Hansen: HI Dave. I get this question a lot (outside of this chat too), and at first I thought it was the change in uniform numbers, from 30 to 95. But now I realize maybe it’s that he is not aligning with some people’s preseason expectations for Bryce Young? Here are the raw numbers, though, and then I can put this into context. His Pro Football Focus overall season film grade is up 16 points over last year. That’s a major leap. He did not have his best game against NC State on Saturday, but still did some things well.

What the sophomore DE does very well is tackle and play the run, and that’s where he’s showing up on tape. I think the anticipation was that his pass rush grade would be off the charts, and it’s tepid. So maybe that’s creating the perception. Understandably. He’s also in a pretty deep rotation with Jordan Botelho and Josh Burnham. All those things factor in, but he is improving, bottom line. Just not loudly.

Kevin from Calgary: Eric, a belated Canadian Thanksgiving! (We celebrate it earlier because winter arrives here a lot sooner). A couple questions for you, first, you made a comment two weeks ago which concerned me. You said in response to someone asking about Love and Price getting all the reps that you wouldn’t be surprised to see Aneyas Williams and Nolan James as ND’s one-two punch next year. Clearly Love will be entering the draft, but do you think it’s also a given Price will too? Would be great to have him for another season. Second, Does ND not care about its Canadian fans? With no Peacock up here and TSN+ not picking up the game I was left to follow the action by waiting for the (tediously) slow online updates of each play, which sometimes showed up five minutes apart. I know there’s little you can do, so that was more just me venting. Keep up the great work!

Eric Hansen: Kevin, I missed it? Thank you for the sentiment. I will never pass up a chance to eat turkey, unless that’s not what is eaten at Canadian Thanksgiving. Then ribs will suffice. …. Jadarian Price will have his Notre Dame degree and will have one more year of eligibility because of the one he lost to the ruptured Achilles his freshman year. I suppose if there’s one running back who might buck the trend … but I am not sure why. Running back is THE position where tread on the tires matter. Coming out early makes sense and Price is already on the NFL’s radar — big time. ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. has Jeremiyah Love as the No. 1 RB in the 2026 draft and Price No. 3. So, now what do you think? And bringing two RBs in, in the 2026 class also hints what ND thinks he’s going to do.

As far as Peacock and Canada, I’m sorry that happened. There is a workaround, but I can’t remember what it is. I usually get asked about it a lot. This is the first year I did not. You are welcome to drive down and watch it at my house. I got Peacock for free and didn’t even know it as a perk for something else I signed up for.

David from New York: Eric! Thanks as always for the chats. I’m loving the progress the team is making and the defense in particular. With all the twitter-verse commentary that the reason the D struggled in the first two games was because significant changes were made post camp during Miami game prep, I just can’t make sense of what drove that. And now that we have settled back in on D the first few games just feel like even more of a head-scratcher. Do we know what drove the changes toward the end of preseason practice?

Eric Hansen: David! I have to tell you. Your Twitter-verse and mine are on two different planets apparently. I have no idea what you’re talking about. Zero. Maybe I am misunderstanding the question. But we’ve had scads of stories at blueandgold.com about what went wrong and what’s gone right since in real time. I hope you’ll find that helpful. If you want to take another stab at the question, maybe it’ll get through my thick skull. But you might as well have asked it in Mandarin, because I don’t think what you’re assuming ever happened. Sorry.

Mike from Canmore: When can current Penn State players enter the portal? If immediate, do you think Notre Dame will legitimately pursue any of them?  I thought its been reported on this site that there were / are changes to the rules that allow players to enter the portal when there’s change in the head coach of their program.

Eric Hansen: Hi Mike. I just Googled Canmore, because I had never heard of it. If it’s the town in Canada, wow. Breathtaking. … and great question. How we in the media write about the portal rules can get confusing, and they change every year, it seems. So here’s the bottom line for what applies now: There’s a 15-day window for players to leave in light of a head coaching change. Here’s now how it works. it STARTS five days after the NEW coach is announced/hired, not five days after the old coach is ousted. So, those players won’t be hitting the portal now or anytime soon.

Jeff from Phoenix: Eric! Another thanks for you and Tyler taking the time to meet up last week.  To my fellow chatters, as smart as he is on all things ND football he is an even more genuine and gracious guy to have a beer with and chat up in person.  And now a question, does either the QBR rating or the pass efficiency rating take into account the difficulty of the pass attempts that Carr is making?  To make an analogy, in a gymnast performance the final score is a combination of the routine difficulty and the execution. So many of his throws seem to be into tight coverage, something not seen in many years.  Or am I overstating his passing talent? Thanks-

Eric Hansen: Hi Jeff. It was great to meet up with you and Helen .. .and even Tyler James LOL. Seriously, that was great. And thanks for acting as my agent today! Your question is interesting, but I can only answer the pass-efficiency formula part, because that’s the one I use. I don’t pay attention to the QBR. In the pass-efficiency rating, the four main elements are yards per attempt, completion rate, interception rate and TD pass frequency. And as simple as that sounds, it holds up really well. (more)
Eric Hansen: Where you can get some advanced metrics is Pro Football Focus and the film grades. Not only do they give you kind of general grades, they’ll give you situational ones. And since it’s subjective, they can give it more of a gymnastics degree-of-difficulty look to theirs. Thanks again for meeting up with us.

Shane from White Deer, Texas: Hey Eric, I bet USC week is keeping you busy, thanks for taking time to do these chats. Are style points back in vogue now? There was a time I thought that teams were sorta of supposed to let off the gas as it were. Also, do you think the offense scoring more points, or the defense allowing fewer points impresses the committee more?  On a personal note, I have to take my mom to our priest’s going away party Saturday evening. The last USC game I missed was the Bush Push game. I hope I’m not jinxing this team.  Full disclosure, I was skipping the party until my mom wanted to go. She’s 85, couldn’t say no. Go Irish!!

Eric Hansen: Shane, yes busy, but a fun busy. As far as what the committee REALLY considers, I think there’s a gulf between what they do look at and what the public thinks they look at. So, ahead of the first ratings release, I plan to go over all of that in my weekly Behind The Ballot column. But the criteria is way more comprehensive than people think. And how you do offensive and/or defensively against your opponent vs. how they normally perform is a key metric. But no one is going to be impressed if you have your No. 1 offense in against the No. 4 defense in a 70-0 win over Northern Idaho Tech, for instance.

Also what kind of muddles the picture is the committee members aren’t the same as they were five years ago or 10 years ago. And the directive and objectives change too. So, we’ll get you back up to speed. … You made the right move on honoring your mom and going with her to the party. We need to take advantage of every opportunity to make memories with them while we can. … But I have an idea. Maybe intermittently during the party you could become so overcome with emotion that the priest is leaving that you need to excuse yourself? Then head outside for a few minutes and watch on your phone?

Jim in Anthony, Texas: Eric, I really enjoy these chats for all the insights on the FB team. Thanks to my daughter, ’94 will be coming up from far West Texas for the Navy game and then the WBB game on Sunday. I’m a little long in the tooth now, (saw Otto Graham play a series in what was probably the last College All-star game), so my question has nothing to do with FB or BB, but the weather. Given your many years of experience covering Indiana sports in all types of weather, do you think I’ll need to pack the parka or just roll the dice? Thanks a million and pls keep the chats going!

Eric Hansen: Jim, thank you for the kind words and for you confidence that I can predict the second-least predictable thing that I’ve experienced in my life. No. 1 Least predictable — teenagers. No. 2 Least predictable: South Bend weather. Especially THAT time of year, it could be 55 one day and 35 the next. Here’s my thinking. You’re likely going to be outside for a long time, whether you tailgate or not. If you are cold, you are going to be miserable. You can always take the parka off or unzip it. And if you get up here and need a lighter jacket, I’d be happy to lend you one out of my closet. I keep extras.

Andy from Wilmette via South Bend: Good day Eric!!!…Doing well? Feeling well? Boo!! to games on Peacock. They don’t make it easy to watch.  OK, it’s USC week!!!  Questions 1: Will ND stop playing USC?  What a shame – so many memorable games.  My first USC game was in 1977, #5 USC vs #11 ND. ND went through warm ups in the blue jerseys, went into the locker room and came out of the tunnel following a Trojan Horse, wearing the Green Machine Jersey’s. (At the pep rally the night before, Digger said “if Willie Fry wants us to wear green, we wear green”).  First ever Green Jersey game. Noon that day, 12-year-old me was raking leaves with my dad when he got a call from his boss saying he had 2 tix on the 50 for a 1 pm kickoff. We jumped in the car and drove to the stadium just in time for warmups. Montana to MacAfee cleaned their clock that day, 49-19. So much scoring…what a game!!! Question 2: Do you think CJ Carr (aka “Jet”) and Eli Raridon can be as dynamic as those 2 were? Go Irish Beat Trojans!

Eric Hansen: Hi Andy!! Doing and feeling well. Thank you. I hope to have an update on that situation yet this week. No promises. But here’s what I think. I think it will continue on, just not annually and not always on the football calendar where we’re used to seeing it. That’s a hunch and not a scoop, to be transparent. The Joe Montana-KenMacAfee combo is a REALLY high bar. MacAfee to me is No. 1 on the list of some really great tight ends who have worn the gold helmet. Anyone in that particular discussion needs to have a national title on their résumé.

Marie from Atlanta: Hi Eric, I hope you’re enjoying all the excitement on campus for the big game this weekend. It seems like it will be very important for the offense to get off to a good start on Saturday night, I feel like if they can get ahead of USC early that might help  deflate USC a little bit. The last two games the offense has started slowly. What do you think the offense needs to do to be sure to get off to a fast start? I was able to watch a lot of the USC Michigan game, one of the things USC did a lot was have Maiava get the ball out quickly much like Carson Beck did in the Miami game. We saw how poorly the defense responded to that during the Miami game, what adjustments  do you think the defense needs to make to handle this better this time around? Finally, what do you think We’ll see more of, Leonard Moore on Lemon or bracketing of Lemon? As always, thanks for hosting the chats and all the excellent insights.

Eric Hansen: Hi Marie. The buzz usually starts building on campus about Thursday. And I am sure it’ll be a fun vibe. I don’t know that Notre Dame has to put up a lot of points early and get into a track meet, but they do have to play with the lead or within one score. To do that, they’re going to have to be strong on BOTH sides of the ball and not turn the ball over. We’re deep enough into the season now, where teams’ weaknesses on film are more apparent, and that should help the offense. I think there’s confidence on the coaching staff’s part that they can find the cracks in the USC defense.

If USC is committing to getting the ball out quick, the oversimplified answer to a question, that calls for an elongated one, is to try to make those short throws difficult, with your coverages, with disguising your looks, with really good tackling. You can’t just give up an not rush the passer. You need to disrupt. Aslo, USC is one of the most penalized teams. So, when they get behind the chains, you really have to take advantage of that. … I asked Marcus Freeman about Leonard Moore re Makai Lemon on Monday. And of course, he’s not going to spell it out for USC. My sense is Moore does not start out on Lemon. But I wouldn’t be surprised if those two did go head to head intermittently. The Thursday health update re nickel DeVonta Smith is worth tracking.

Tom F from Kennesaw, Ga.: Hi Eric, thanks for having the Chat on my birthday! I believe yours is next week.  Happy Birthday!!! Quick ??’s: How important is it to get off to a good start against SC?? 2) Is Ash as quick to make in-game adjustments as Golden was?? 3) This game has a lot of real playmakers on both sides. Do you see either team with an edge? 4) Presuming ND wins this week, who should ND fans be rooting for in some of the key other games? Ole Miss-UGA? Tenn-Ala? Go Irish!!!!!

Eric Hansen: Happy Birthday, Tom! You have a good memory, mine is next week. To your questions … 1) Yes, I agree about the strong start. USC has some leaks in its defense, but its offense is so relentless, it’s tough to play catchup. 2) No. Not sure many college DCs are, but Chris Ash and the defensive staff have gotten better and better at that with each passing week and at other aspects as well. The halftime tinkering has been really good. 3) I am curious to see what USC’s running game looks like with their top 2 RBs out. No. 3, King Miller, ran all over Michigan last Saturday. ND has more playmakers on defense. USC more on offense. 4) Too early too tell. But I know who needs to win on Saturday night to keep getting questions like this. I don’t know that the intrigue would be as great re the Pop-Tarts Bowl.

Tom K from Chicago: With Ashton Craig out for the year, does USC have the run D capability to exploit a new potential weakness in the middle of our line?

Eric Hansen: Hi Tom, Defense has not been USC’s calling card during the Lincoln Riley Era at all. This year, there are elements of it that have played very well. The Trojans are 29th in run defense, 7th in sacks, 12th in tackles for loss and 16th in turnovers forced. That’s a significant challenge, so that’s a great question you asked about replacing Ashton Craig with Joe Otting. ND’s pass protection had been improving. And the big leak in that defense is pass defense. If you get time to throw, you can gash them. The Trojans are 98th in pass-efficiency defense. I am not sure Otting is the long-term solution at center, but he can earn that this week. If he struggles, perhaps they look at Sullivan Absher there after the bye week.

Ryan from Frankfort, Ill.: Good afternoon Eric what do you think about the Play of Eli Rairdon And Will Pauling Both looked good vs Nc state my score prediction this week is 42-21 Irish Or something like That GO IRISH ☘️☘️☘️🏈🏈🏈

Eric Hansen: Hi Ryan. Both of them looked very good against NC State last week. The NC State coach, Dave Doeren, was surprised how Eli Raridon could get behind his defense. If your score is correct, there will be a big party in South Bend on Saturday night and into Sunday.

Brian from New Jersey: Any idea why the refs wouldn’t allow the hurry-up after Buckner’s fake punt/first down?  It looked like the ND offense was loaded to go vs. their punt return team.

Eric Hansen: Special teams coordinator Marty Biagi was asked that question last night. His answer was that there was an officiating error, that they mis-spotted the ball, so they had to stop the action and correct that. Right thing to do, but not ideal timing.

Tim from Atlanta: Hi Eric–many Irish fans have been missing the expert commentary from your buddy Bob Morton. He is the best. Makes the X’s and O’x accessible and has an understanding of ND football culture like no other. Hilarious to boot! Hope he is OK and that he’ll be back to discuss the season soon. GO IRISH, destroy SC

Eric Hansen: Hi Tim. I talked to Bob Morton last Saturday as I was heading to the game and he has his eyes on ND. I hope to see him doing some commentary down the road. He is really, really good at it. Thanks for bringing him up today.

Patrick from Los Angeles: Just read that Florida is going after Freeman. Do you think that is true, and do you think he may be interested? Thank you.

Eric Hansen: When you have really good coaches, assistant or head coaches, people will take a run at them. If they’re average, you don’t have to deal with that. But I would not expect there to be mutual interest for Marcus Freeman when it came to Florida.

Jeremy from Goshen: Is the issue on 4th and short blocking? play calling? why not do a QB Sneak? Also I am waiting for the play of rolling the pocket to the right with a throwback pass to the tight end leaking out on the other side.

Eric Hansen: Hi Jeremy. All of the above. If ND thought the sneak was their best option, I think they would have tried that more often. Now with center Ashton Craig out, I’m not sure those odds improve. Now if 6-7, 322-pound Sullivan Absher becomes the long-term solution, maybe then it works out.

Charlie in Palm Desert: Eric—can we talk?  I think the O-line (our supposed strength) is seriously out of whack. The best RB tandem in the US gets stuffed at the line (or behind it) way too often. Confronted with 4th-and-inches and we resort to trickeration: a rollout pass play for minus 10…a play on which Knapp completely ignores 2 rushers lined up in his face who eventually run Carr our of bounds.  These guys were supposed to jell as the season progressed.  Do you know what’s happening?

Eric Hansen: Hi Charlie, you did a great job of packing a lot of different elements and tangents into that question. Let me answer this more generally. The offensive line play has improved since the start of the year and needs to keep coming. They’ve been much better at pass blocking than run blocking. What you may not be accounting for is how defenses play Notre Dame, and most are going to take their chances with the passing game and load up the box. That’s going to result in some less-than-impressive running plays followed by some strong passing ones. CJ Carr’s continual growth at the line of scrimmage pre-snap will help the process, through sliding protections, etc. I know there are frustrating moments, but big picture it’s still the No. 14 team in scoring offense and No. 21 in total offense. .. with room for improvement.

Derek from Oakville, Canada: For Kevin from Calgary – While no Peacock in Canada all games are streamed live on Fighting Irish TV to international audiences for free.

Eric Hansen: There you go. Thanks for chiming in on that point, Derek!

Don from Scottsdale, Ariz.: Eric, I’m late to the chat and a lot of other things as well!!!!  For some reason I have a feeling this game will be a long, tough game for ND.  I hope I’m wrong, but I think the O line will have a tough game as well as the defensive secondary.  Are my fears simply ghosts from USC of old or are they somewhat grounded.  By the way, your output on the new site is great. I may be mistaken, but it seems like you have a bounce in step!!!!!!

Eric Hansen: Hi Don. You are not misperceiving the bounce in my step. It’s real and it’s spectacular, so to speak. .. to your actual question(s), I think those are legit concerns. If ND has fault lines in this matchup, that’s where the cracks would most likely happen. But the Irish have a lot going for them. And USC has its weaknesses, including a 1-11 record the last 12 times it’s ventured into the Eastern or Central time zones.

Mark from Memphis, Tenn.: Hi Eric!!!!  Long-time reader, first time with a question.  First, a comment: I loved the way ND snuck their second-team o-line on the field for the fake punt. They opened up a big hole for Buchner and made the play work.  Now, my question:  As the season wears on, attrition becomes a greater issue and depth a greater concern.  At what positions do you see the gap between starter and backup to be the greatest?

Eric Hansen: Mark!!!!!!!!!!! Not only did you ask a great question, your punctuation game is next level. The good part of the answer to your question is that ND flexes its depth so often and at so many position groups, the backups perform at a very high level. But I would say another O-line injury would be tough to take. Sullivan Absher is next up and then Chris Terek, but the tackles are problematic because of inexperienced backups (Absher can play there, though). Losing Leonard Moore, we have seen, changes that dynamic in the back end. Tight end would be problematic, though Cooper Flanagan should be back soon. There are specific players and not necessarily position groups where you’d lose a lot. Boubacar Traore and Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa for instance.

Len from the Jersey Shore: Hello Eric $$$$!  Following is a list of ND O-linemen drafted with the round since O line U returned to ND in 2014.
2011-2013 – none
2014 – Zack Martin (1), Chris Watt (3)
2015 – none
2016 – Ronnie Stanley (1), Nick Martin (2)
2017 – none
2018 – Quenton Nelson (1), Mike McGlinchey (1)
2019 – none
2020 – none – Only time two years in a row
2021 – Liam Eichenberg (2), Aaron Banks (2), Robert Hainsey (3)
2022 – none
2023 – Jarrett Patterson (6)
2024 – Joe Alt (1), Blake Fischer (2)
2025 – None
If Billy Schrauth stays for next season, it will be only the second time since 2014 that ND has not had an O lineman drafted for two consecutive years. I would slot Billy S between Hainsey and Patterson near the lower end of ND players on the O line that were drafted during this time if he decided to leave. How good is this line, especially in run blocking, compared to the last 12 years?  Thanks Eric for hosting.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Eric Hansen: Hi Len$$$. I appreciate the research and time you put into the question. I wish that, in the format of doing a live chat, where my research time is very limited, that I could match you. I can’t. Perhaps this is a long-form story I could do at some point. But I’ll try my best within my constraints here. Let’s compare how good this line is going into game 7 vs. what it would need to be in the playoff. And the answer is, the progress is encouraging, but the cake needs to go back into the oven, especially when it comes to run blocking. And not likely to have Charles Jagusah before the postseason and maybe not in the postseason does not help that prospect. But I think there’s potential for the right side of the line, in particular, to be much better in December than it is now. Who the long-term answer is at center and how well they play is a huge factor as well.

Rick from Ohio: As a lifelong ND fan I can’t remember a more frustrating victory than Saturday’s win over NC State. I could approach the 17 question limit but will concentrate on these items: 1.) By preseason accounts we were led to believe that Love and Price would be on the field at the same time. I can only remember a handful of times that has happened. Do you think they are saving that combination for USC?  2.) Why do you think they ran virtually the same play on the two fourth down tries hoping our one receiver can beat his man without a plan B?  3.) On going on fourth down twice in a tie game late in the half seems to be chasing points rather than getting a lead in a game that at that time was a dogfight. If Burnette was questionable to attempt 25 and 32 yard field goals why did they run him out there to kick a 48 yarder as time expired? It’s possible my frustration was fueled to my being in the stadium Saturday. Thanks for the great work Eric.

Eric Hansen: Rick. Your opening statement stopped me in my tracks. A 36-7 victory over a team that took out a ranked Virginia team is THE MOST FRUSTRATING win you can remember? Wow. I’m sure there were elements that were befuddling, but talk about throwing the baby out with the bath water. Ok, to your questions. (I think I need to violate the no-drinking rule after that. I am stunned.) 1) Rick, I can’t control who and what you read, but no one on our staff painted that picture. Now, did we think ND would play MORE two-back than it has in the past. Yes. But the way you win football games is finding weaknesses in the defense and exploiting them, not sticking to a template. So if/when that opportunity shows itself, you will see that personnel group.

2) Marcus Freeman explained the team’s thinking on those two plays in his Monday press conference. 3) I agree with your thinking here and in some other games. Sometimes, you need to make it a two-possession game and put the pressure on the opposing team’s offense. … Now that you explained you were there in person, it makes more sense, because you are not getting the rationale in your ear in real time as you would watching on TV and maybe someone spilled a beer on you. In any event, thanks for the questions.

Matt from Austin: Hello Eric. I hope this finds you well. I’m sure the queue is full of questions regarding Craig’s injury and Otting’s ability to step in, so let me pivot. Carr still seems to get a little loose with his throws and turnovers will be at a premium against SC. Can you give us three other things to focus on that you see as vital to a victory? Lastly, who will be Notre Dame’s MVP this week? Thanks Eric!!!

Eric Hansen: Matt, somehow I skipped over this live, but am answering now in the land of transcripts. I do disagree on the big-picture assessment of CJ Carr. Yes, he doesn’t make great decisions 100% of the time, but I think he’s pretty good with that and getting better by the game. His No. 7 ranking in pass efficiency backs that up. So three other things … 1) Who wins both lines of scrimmage, 2) If ND can exploit USC’s pass defense, 3) Big special teams moments. … Finally ND’s MVP? I’m going to go out on a limb and say Jordan Faison.    

James Placitas from New Mexico: Eric~Thanks for the gentlemanly display of team work with Tyler, Blue and Gold, and your monastic vigilance following each five hour gameday !  Your sincere and earnest listening and requests for Tyler ‘s point of view remind me on occasion that the backdrop for FNS should be adjacent to the Reconciliation Room at Sacred Heart… but i digress! What are your reflections on the sideline outbursts by HCMF at the officials ? Do you believe it changes refs manner of calling the game ? Couldn’t the energy be better spent on planning for fourth-down situations?

Eric Hansen: James, thank you, but you may be giving me too much credit, but thank you. I’ll take it. … Marcus Freeman’s calling card is authenticity, so I think the outbursts are less pragmatic in nature than they are just genuine emotion and/or disgust. I pay a lot less attention to the quality of officiating than most people do, because I think it’s important to transcend it rather than belabor it. But some calls and reviews got my attention on Saturday. James, I think that’s a good thought on where the energy should be spent, but I don’t think one comes at the expense of the other. I think you can be mad at the officials and still make good decisions on fourth downs. Unfortunately, only one of those things happened on Saturday.

Joe H from Williams Bay, Wis.: Hi Eric Thanks again for hosting such a great forum While I love how the defense has played the last 3 weeks I’m very concerned how we are going to do against SC wideouts especially #6.Seems like this is the first year of the last three that we haven’t gone to the portal and gotten a real good nickel who excels in pass coverage I’m sure So Cal will try and exploit our young nickel backs what do you think we can do to help them outside of a great pass rush?

Eric Hansen: Hi Joe. I actually wrote about this on Tuesday: Change for a nickel? Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame ponder their pass-defense options vs. USC … so if you want more depth on the topic, I’d check that out. No. 6 is Makai Lemon, and he is having as good a year as a WR as anyone in college football in 2025. But to your question, ND did go into the portal for an experienced nickel and got him — DeVonta Smith. The problem has been health. He’s missed three games, including the last two, and played more than 20 snaps in only one game. A great pass rush will help. Intermittent Leonard Moore on Lemon is a possibility. A healthy Smith would be great. The good news is Dallas Golden has played 199 snaps this season and is learning and is a great athlete. Not yet a great DB, but a great athlete. And that will help.

Jeff from Port St. Lucie: Do you think Ja’Juan Seider was more willing to move to Notre Dame last offseason because he saw what might be coming at Penn State and wanted to beat the posse out of town?

Eric Hansen: Hi Jeff. If he did, then he kept it a secret from one of the best defensive coordinators in college football, Jim Knowles, who left Ohio State to go to Penn State this offseason.

Matt from DC: Good morning!! I’ve been very impressed with Boubacar Traore’s rise this year. He seems to jump off the screen even to someone like me who may not understand all the nuances of D-Line play. I was expecting a much bigger jump out of Bryce Young, though. How has their play looked to you (and are there any more advanced stats to indicate they may be playing better/worse than I may think from the eye test?) thanks!

Eric Hansen: Hi Matt. I addressed the Bryce Young part of this earlier, so let me focus on Boubacar Traore. While Bryce Young is ND’s sixth-ranked defender in the first half of the season, BT is No. 2. And he’s good across the board. No. 2 overall behind Leonard Moore. No. 1 pass rush of anyone with more than one pass-rush snap. No. 2 tackler behind Tae Johnson and even No. 4 in coverage overall, though he’s only had 4 coverage snaps. So the eye test matches the PFF test in this case.

Eric Hansen: OK that’s going to have to do it for this week. I’m off to women’s basketball media day, which would have been much better being scheduled next week LOL. Oh well. Thanks for all the great questions! And, check out Mike Singer, Landon Tengwall, Tyler Horka and me on the Notre Dame Football Show tonight live at 8 ET on the blueandgold YouTube channel. As far as the chats, we’ll be back next Wednesday at our regular noon ET time slot to do it all again.