Former Notre Dame QB Rick Mirer on Irish scheduling FCS foe, alumni inclusion under Freeman
Former Notre Dame quarterback Rick Mirer spoke with BlueandGold.com earlier this week about a number of Fighting Irish topics, including the his alma mater scheduling its first ever FCS opponent.
The Notre Dame football Twitter account announced April 5 that the Tennessee State — coached by former Ohio State running back Eddie George — would be coming to South Bend in 2023. Of course, the Irish are led by Marcus Freeman, who is also an alum of the Buckeyes.
“I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Eddie George is there and there’s a connection … To me, the flexibility of not being in a conference gives you options,” Mirer said. “I would imagine [athletic director] Jack Swarbrick had a big say in this and felt it was a good thing.
“I have no problem with it. We played smaller schools that didn’t really make sense historically, but there’s usually a reason and a tie. With Marcus and Eddie’s past, maybe that’s some of it. It’s a great opportunity for [Tennessee State] to get in front of a big audience, and I’m all for it.”
Mirer also spoke a bit about his three sons. Charlie will enroll at Stanford this summer as a freshman quarterback for the Cardinal, while Oliver and Morrison play for the Michigan and Notre Dame lacrosse teams, respectively. Another topic of discussion was how long Mirer has known Irish rising sophomore quarterback Tyler Buchner, and his expectations for him this fall.
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A revealing note from the interview was when Mirer was asked about Notre Dame football alumni being more involved with the program already under Freeman in just his first few months on the job.
“Definitely. Yes, definitely,” Mirer stated. “There’s been more inclusion of the older guys than I’ve ever seen, and I think it’s a good move. It’s nice to include everybody. I told Marcus when I saw him that I appreciated that, and he said that he really wants the guys to be around the younger kids and be mentors, a sounding board and someone in the network going forward … I’m guessing there will be more guys back for the spring game weekend than there’s ever been.”
From April 21-23, the Fighting Irish are hosting their inaugural Notre Dame Football Legacy Weekend. Among the activities for the event are watching practice that Thursday morning, a networking dinner, golf outing, tailgate and of course watching the Blue-Gold game April 23.
Watch the full video interview, which is embedded above.
