Coming off an opening game victory, Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman opened up his weekly press conference by praising what he felt were two key aspects of the win: winning the battle of field position as well as the turnover battle. In addition, he noted that the defense held Texas A&M to a pair of field goals in the red zone and had the ability to make adjustments in changing circumstances.
Before responding to questions, Freeman indicated that the players of the game were Riley Leonard on offense, Xavier Watts on defense and Mitch Jeter on special teams. Freeman also offered an update on Jordan Faison’s sprained ankle, which will likely keep him out one or two games.
Freeman said that he had just received a phone call from his college coach that offered advice rather than praise:
“(He said), ‘Hey I just want to remind you, the greatest danger is the illusion that all is well when indeed, all isn’t well.’ That’s the reminder I needed, more than anything, that it was a big win for our program versus a good opponent but we have so much work to really improve on.”
Despite some bumps along the way, Freeman praised the work of the new offensive line:
“I was really proud of the way they performed. They did a good job against a really tough defensive line and they battled.”
Mitchell Evans’ brief return was by design and was done as a way to slowly acclimate him back on the field:
“He just got cleared six or seven days before we played, so we were very intentional about getting him on the field … Each week, we’ll continue to increase his workload.”
Noting Faison’s injury, Freeman indicated that K.K. Smith is at least one receiver who’s likely to see a larger role among the receiving corps:
“We have a lot of confidence in K.K. Micah Gilbert’s another guy that I think we’ll see this week … There’s a lot of confidence from Micah Gilbert on down in that room.”
Leonard’s first game effort was also hailed by Freeman:
“He played the quarterback position well. He did what we asked him to do, which was to take care of the football. We weren’t asking for explosive plays.”
Freeman discussed the challenge of fixing the penalty issues that surfaced on Saturday night after he was asked how easy it would be to accomplish”
“Nothing’s easy. No, it’s not easy at all but we have to practice it, we have to drill it. It’s the lack of focus penalties are the ones you get frustrated on. You gotta see the ball snapped if you’re on defense. You can’t jump offsides.”
Mike Dembrock’s presence on the field was explained by Freeman:
“Dembrock’s decision to be on the field was a decision he made and we talked about it. ‘What’s best for you as an offensive coordinator to get your job done?’ When you’re a coordinator you have to feel comfortable with who’s in the (press) box and who’s going to give you the information you need.
Freeman also explained why he was so aggressive in his calls on Saturday:
“The fourth down calls? I wanted to be aggressive. I had a plan going into the game, in certain areas of the field … we were gonna go for it … I’m asking these guys to be aggressive, attacking. I just didn’t want to be cautious in that monent of the game. I felt strongly about our defense, too.”
Disagreeing with a reporter over Leonard’s strength in moving the ball down the field through the air, Freeman explained his attitude:
“I feel comfortable saying, ‘Riley, let’s take some shots and throw it down the field.”
The fastest approaches to fixing issues from Saturday’s game were noted by Freeman:
“Those pre-snap penalties are one for sure. We’ve practiced it but the results aren’t where you want it, so we gotta practice it in a different way. It takes time but it also takes strategy.”
Freeman praised the Notre Dame fans who traveled to College Station and explained how motivating it was to be playing at home:
“We owe it to each other and our football program to perform at a high level. We also owe it to these fans who come to support us to make sure we’re performing at a high level and high standard.”
The performances of linebacker Jordan Botelho and safety Adon Shuler drew separate praise from Freeman:
“Jordan played well and he played hard. Consistently, and that’s what you want to see out of a senior.”
“I believed in him (Shuler) since the first time we evaluated him. He’s just now earning everything he’s getting on game days.”
Big win!