Notre Dame players, Marcus Freeman share how strength coach Matt Balis has changed the Irish program

When you flip on NBC, ESPN or wherever you’re watching Notre Dame football every Saturday in the fall, you’ll see several faces on the sidelines or in the box: head coach Marcus Freeman, offensive coordinator Tommy Rees, and the list goes on.

Someone who you may not see — but who has made an impact on the Irish program difficult to quantify — is director of football performance Matt Balis. The strength coach, who is a native of nearby Chicago, and his notoriously difficult workouts have in many ways become the center of the Irish program.

Former Notre Dame defensive back Shaun Crawford is the host of Varsity House Podcast, and he had Freeman, former defensive lineman Myron Tagovailoa-Amosa and receiver Avery Davis on as guests for his first episode. Crawford, Tagovailoa-Amosa and Freeman piled praise on Balis and the way he prepares the Irish football players for their time at Notre Dame and beyond.

“Coach Balis’ first year was after the 4-8 (season),” Crawford said of Balis’ 2017 start at Notre Dame. “He changed the whole program around. When he came in, workouts were at 6 a.m. Everybody’s in there. If you’re late, you have to do like 200 up-downs.”

The conversation about Balis actually started when Crawford asked Tagovailoa-Amosa about his NFL Draft preparation ahead of the April 28-30 event. The Hawaii native ran through a list of things for Davis to know about before next year when he goes through the process, and Crawford added on about Balis.

“One of the biggest things is the training and the whole schedule,” Crawford said. “You see guys who come from different programs, and they can’t follow the schedule or they aren’t used to (the training). For me, having Coach Balis as our strength coach, that’s your foundation.”

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The current free agent added he would go to workouts and be surprised when they ended so quickly. He was expecting a step up. Turns out, he was already there thanks to Balis.

“That’s the structure you need,” Crawford added. “You’re going to be pushed to the max every single time. You see that you’re already steps ahead of people in your class or the people that you may be playing against.”

This was in no way a knock on other programs. It was a testament to what Balis has built and shows his deep understanding of what it requires to make an impact at all levels of football. Much like a preparatory school before college, Balis makes it seem easy at the next level.

“I think the foundational makeup that Coach Balis and his staff bring out of each and every one of us, as we leave for the draft, it applies,” Tagovailoa-Amosa added.

And he would know. The defensive lineman is currently preparing for the April 28-30 NFL Draft with hopes of hearing his name called.

“While going through my training, nothing compares to Coach Balis,” he joked. “Let’s make that clear. I think what shocked me the most throughout the draft process was realizing how much harder this guy is than draft prep.”

He added he’s had trainers comment that Notre Dame prospects are ahead of the game during draft preparation because Balis has already worked through all of the drills with his players.

“Every year when Notre Dame guys enter the draft, you see these numbers that (the NFL wants),” Tagovailoa-Amosa concluded. “A lot of that starts with Coach Balis and this program.”

The most recent example of this is receiver Kevin Austin Jr., who entered the NFL Combine as a fringe draft pick. He performed extremely well at the combine, including a 4.43 40-yard dash, raising his draft stock and putting him on a number of radars. He could now go early on Day 3.

Balis also built the famed Spring Workout Accountability Teams (SWAT), which not only bonded the team in the weight room, but built friendships outside of it with rules around class and other sporting events. Transfer Brandon Joseph highlighted the benefits of those teams and workouts earlier this season and numerous other players have spoken highly of them.

Lastly, Freeman chimed in. While he’s known Balis for a lesser amount of time than the three players, it is clear the strength coach has already made a big impact on the first-year head coach.

“Balis does such an unbelievable job, not just physically but mentally building these guys to take on all challenges,” Freeman said. “That’s what makes this place different. I lean on him heavily.”

Anyone who has watched a Notre Dame practice this spring knows this is true. When the team begins a workout with calisthenic exercises, Balis is leading the pack alongside Freeman. When the players break off into position groups or otherwise, Balis is walking around providing insight.

“He carries out our culture,” Freeman added. “It’s built in that weight room. It’s built on what Coach Balis and his staff do. He creates a brotherhood, but also a group that is mentally tough and has pushed passed the limits. So what a huge shoutout and credit to Coach Balis and his staff for what they do for our football program.”