Everything Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said two days before Navy game

Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman spoke to the media on Zoom for 15 minutes Thursday, two days before the No. 10 Fighting Irish (6-2) host the Navy Midshipmen (7-1) in a primetime game in South Bend on Saturday night.

This is everything Freeman said about the opponent and much more.

Who will be Notre Dame’s placekicker this weekend?

“We’re going to go with Erik, Erik Schmidt, and a lot of things went into those decisions: How we feel about the health of Noah (Burnette) and what’s best for the team. And I think at the end of the day, that’s what’s the ultimate decision-maker, what is best for the team. What do we feel like is going to be best for the team to have the confidence to make the field goal when we ask our field goal kicker to make it — our field goal unit  — to make it. That’s probably the best answer I can give you for that.”

Is James Rendell eligible for another year of eligibility, and what has made him so good this season?

“I’m not sure about the extra year yet. Still waiting to hear back, I think, on that one. As far as what he’s done, it’s the work, the intentional work, the mental and physical work, he’s put in. He’s doing a lot of little things that it takes to be more consistent. He’s always had a strong leg, but just understanding the different type of punts we need. What punts suit him the best in certain situations. I think that has helped all of us in terms of how we want to call each punt play, how we’re trying to cover that for that unit. But James has been doing a really, really good job. He’s been a good weapon for our team, and he’s elevated tremendously because of the work he’s put in, and the confidence he has and the consistency he’s punting with.”

What are the keys to Notre Dame’s success in November?

“All those things. The people that put in effort to make sure that we are intentionally doing things that are going to help maximize the players throughout the entirety of the season is important and credit to a lot of people that put work in and thought into how we structure what we ask ’em to do and how we do things. They understand the importance of November. 

“I remember when I was in college, coach (Jim) Tressel used to always talk about contenders show up in November and the importance of November, but I try not to group November as a month, right? Everything has a process, and this can be being good in November, this can be a game, but everything has a process. But in order to accomplish that process, you got to just stay focused on the present and then struggle in the presence. And so being good in November is a reflection of being good each week, each opportunity and each opportunity is a reflection of being good each day. 

“And so I think for me it’s the ability to continue to remind ’em like this is about this opportunity, not the big picture in November. We know that, but this opportunity that we have right in front of us. And if we focus on that and then we focus on understanding that today is the most important thing we have, the way we practice, the way we meet, then all of a sudden you’ll look back and say, Hey, we had a good November, but it was in the moment. You just focus on what you have right in front of you.”

What is it about Notre Dame defensive linemen playing scout team offensive line that is so impressive and useful?

“Yeah, there’s pros and cons, right? The con is that you don’t have a big offensive lineman in there that’s used to playing offensive lineman, giving you the scout look, but there’s a lot of pros of it. Just that you have a bigger body in there and instead of maybe a different size body that you could just fill in and so you can get the power and the effort that the defense needs. Those D-linemen need to see a great look. 

“So I always say this, it is really important to go hard in practice for our scout teams because the guys that aren’t on scout team, the offense and defense, have to know how to play with the right technique. You got to continue to learn how to play with the right technique. You only learn that through the velocity in which you practice. And so the unselfishness of that defensive line room, the ability to say, okay, hey, for these couple plays, I’m going to be a scout team offensive lineman. 

“The next play I got to take off this jersey and be on the defense. They’re unselfish, but it’s what the team needs. And usually, I always say, usually what the team needs from you is ultimately what’s going to be what’s best for you too as an individual. And so those guys are team-first guys and they’re making themselves better, too”

How do you prepare the Notre Dame defense for Navy’s versatile offense? 

“Yeah, I think the only way you can try to prepare for him is to try to simulate the speed at which they perform in the game. And you’re never going to be able to practice it at the speed you’ll see it in the game. And our guys have to understand it. So you make sure you practice it, but then you gotta combine that with showing them how they play in the game. You gotta watch film. You gotta make sure they understand the scheme but also the people that have shown to be the playmakers. And we always know the quarterback is a guy that can threaten you in the run and the pass game, but [Eli Heidenreich] has done a really good job in both areas. He’s a playmaker. He’s targeted a lot in the pass game. He gets the ball in the run game.

“And then you have to make sure in the run game, you are understanding what your responsibility is, right? You gotta understand what your responsibility is and have clean eyes. And so, we’re trying to give them the best look possible. And we’re watching as much film as we can. And we gotta be able to carry that over to Saturday night when the tempo the tempo and the velocity they play their offense with is going to be elevated from what you see in practice.”

How does Tae Johnson adapt to being thrown into the fire of defending Navy for the first time as a Notre Dame starter? 

“Yeah. I mean, depending on the defensive call and the offensive formation, will tell him where his eyes need to be. But every play you gotta know where your eyes are. You gotta know what your alignment is and you gotta know what technique you play with, right? And that’s pre-snap. And then all of a sudden they start shifting and motioning and doing all these things. And then post-snap, where do your eyes really transfer to? Is it staying on your man? Is it a progression to something else? And so you gotta keep repping that.

“And it’s always unique for the guys that have never played a triple option team, even in high school. But specifically like the Navy or Army in college, it takes them a little bit of time to adjust to the speed that the game goes at. So TayTay has been working extremely hard along with a lot of our guys that this is their first time playing a triple option. But it’s going to take a little bit. It’ll take them, the first time guys, just a little bit of time. And we can’t take too much time, right, to adjust to the speed. But we gotta just make sure that we remember, ‘hey, where’s my eyes? Where’s my alignment? Where’s my technique?’ And then you gotta play fast when the ball is snapped.

“People can think I’m crazy, but you can’t play Navy fit-ball, right? You can’t play perfectly, just fit, dive, quarterback pitch. Yeah, you gotta know your responsibilities, but if you don’t play these guys with violence and velocity, you’re not going to win. You have to go and attack and make sure you attack while you have your eyes, your alignment, your technique in the correct spots.

How does Donovan Hinish manage to fly under the radar as a Notre Dame team captain?

“I think he is a consistent person and high achievers are consistent, right? He consistently chooses hard. When I think of Donovan Hinish, I think of a guy that just from where he’s from, how he was raised from his parents, his brother and sister, he is a guy that that’s who he is. He’s a guy that consistently chooses hard. And when you do that enough in practice, then all of a sudden it happens in a game that becomes who you are.

“And he’s a tough, tough guy battling through injuries and continuing to put team first. Every week his role might change a little bit, but he puts team first while battling through tough injuries. I’m glad we have him. And his brother was another great example of that. That’s, that’s how he does it, right? He’s not a big rah, rah talk guy. He’s a go about my business every single day. And Saturdays are no different.”

Is there anything from a practice structure standpoint or load management standpoint you’ve tweaked as a result of learning from last year’s 16-game season? 

“I mean, small, small adjustments. I think any leader has to be flexible. You gotta deal with the current situation of your team and while also looking big picture, right? I continue to tell people to stay in the moment, but I have to be a guy that looks big picture, right? Because that will determine what we do in the moment. And so you have to be adaptable. And this can be individualized, right? There’s individuals that need to be adapted, but the individuals that need adjustments, that affects your team because somebody has to take those reps, right? Somebody has to take those reps because you can’t cheat the team from one individual. You can adjust it for him. 

“And so those are things that every day there’s feedback, there’s dialogue between me and our sports performance staff. And based on what happened yesterday, how do we want to adjust today? We always are proactive with the structure of the week. And again, the structure of the week is based on the big picture and the opponent. But you have to be adaptable in the moment. It’s not a black and white thing where I’ve said, this was one change we made, this is what we learned from last year. No, it’s just the structure. The big picture from August, really you can think even to post last January to how we’ve structured out practice through week 12 was with the knowledge that we utilized from last year. But then in the moment you have to make the adjustments based on what your numbers and your team and the science is telling you.”