Notre Dame started the day as four-touchdown favorites over unranked Northern Illinois. They ended the day outcoached, outhustled, outrun, outsmarted, and maybe out cold on the canvas this early in the season.
The Irish were out in every sense of the word – out of gas, out of good play calls (a long throw on a 2nd and 1 during a late 4th quarter drive with a 1-point lead?), out of defensive and offensive line push against a MAC opponent, out of excuses.
Notre Dame was listless against a fired-up but unranked Northern Illinois squad that the Notre Dame program had never faced in its history.
Notre Dame was a 28-point favorite this week after its 23-13 win in front of over 100,000 fans in College Station last week. Notre Dame moved up to #5 in the polls and had all the hype of an early-season contender and a third-year coach who was getting national praise—no more.
That coach brought in a quarterback who didn’t play in spring ball and cannot throw a deep ball. That quarterback has thrown 0 touchdown passes and two interceptions through eight quarters of football. How did that quarterback beat out Steve Angeli and Kenny Minchey or even CJ Carr, who we saw throw beautiful deep balls in the Sun Bowl and the Spring Game? Those players all chose Notre Dame from day 1. They have stuck by Notre Dame and not transferred.
Riley Leonard did not play poised today at home against Northern Illinois. He repeatedly missed open receivers and threw two costly picks, one that cost Notre Dame the game.
Two immediate changes must happen if there is any chance the Irish bounce back from this loss.
Irish Need Quarterback Change to Spark a Bounce Back
Riley Leonard should not start the next game. He has not shown through two games that he can accurately pass downfield, make quick check-down decisions, or go through his progressions. He misses wide-open receivers and throws behind them. There is no reason to stick with Leonard; he has only this year of eligibility left. The others have a long-term future at Notre Dame and can lead the Irish this season to build towards next season. Leonard averaged 5.1 yards per pass—again, unacceptable.
Freeman needs to take more control over the offense
The 2nd and 1 deep pass play should never have happened. The clock was ticking. The Irish were moving the ball and needed a score to win the game. Instead, they threw into double coverage on 2nd and 1 and lost the game. The Irish defense gave up 3 points (the late FG) in the last 40+ minutes of game time. Yet the Irish lost at home. The offense took a step back this week from last week and has taken a step back under offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock, shockingly, from Gerard Parker last year. Freeman should have called off that play call.
Running backs Jeremyah Love and Jadarian Price averaged over 7 and 6 yards per carry, respectively, yet did not touch the ball on the 2nd and 1 or on the last few drives. They are the Irish’s best and most explosive offensive weapons, and the offense went away from them.
If Freeman wants to grow as a head coach and keep his job, he must immediately take more control of the offense. Not that he must call plays, but that he should be more involved. He cannot defer to his coordinators. The defense was fine, though it was shredded in the first half by Norther Illinois’s high-powered running back Antario Brown.
This writer has seen the losses to Marshall and Stanford, Kelly’s losses to Tulsa, Connecticut, Duke, and others, and the Weis and Willingham years. This was worse. The Irish had moved up to #5 and were coming off a strong road win, albeit against a rebuilding team.
There is absolutely no excuse for today’s performance in the year’s first home game. The defense did what it needed to do to win the game in the second half, while the offense repeatedly shot itself in the foot and hurt the team.
Two solutions to keep the team believing and the fans engaged: play a different quarterback and spark the offense, have more checks and balances on offensive play calling to focus on the running backs who are averaging 6 and 7 yards per carry, get the ball to the tight ends, and throw downfield earlier in the game, not on 2nd and 1 when the clock is the Irish’s own worst enemy.
If the Irish don’t make changes fast, they will be out of luck and hope of any postseason, which will be a long, long season. Now, we will see if Freeman is truly up for the job and what this team is made of.
Can they get back off the canvas and punch back, or are they out cold in the first week of September?
I couldn’t even read this post after this game. I wasn’t surprised to see the game close but never thought they would lose. The defense is solid but the line is not exactly SEC quality but good. The offensive line has been better than I would have expected based upon their losses. But the Coaching in this game was terrible. How do you put a QB who is struggling to throw the ball down field or to even see wide open receivers down field make this type of play in a game dependent moment. That being said, I do believe ND is on the right tract for a NC, (look how Michigan did it) but you can tell this is Freeman 1st gig. It’s not happening this year but who really thought it could but the right players are coming to the program and the future is bright…albeit painful!!!
It’s a rerun of the last 2 seasons.
And frankly it’s a rerun of every other futile season post Holtz. Only in 2005 and 2012 was there any true hope and those seasons eventually exposed teams lacking in total quality.
Even in the playoff years, you knew the playoff game was going to be a loss.
Otherwise ervery other season starting in 1995 has been a bust.
I’m more inspired by Niele Ivey, Hannah Hidalgo, Olivia Miles and that team. Kevin Corrigan finally built a juggernaut.
So..let’s sell our souls to the devil and hire urban meyer..
Bench the qb
Damian; I agree with your points. The NIL has changed the landscape, and the Ivy League and a few others have refused to play this new game. The ND football program is a money machine, and the University has been only too happy to raise prices oNDn everything, and we as fans have let this happen. We have NOT had a real top flight program since Holtz left. Why do you bring in top
QB talent and then let them sit and go to the portal ? If we don’t change the QB’s for Purdue, we are not serious about this season.
I’m looking forward to a lacrosse 3peat. The women’s soccer team is doing well. The women’s cross country team is also ranked high. Women’s basketball looks tough. Fencing is of course tops.
Notre Dame has become a fancy school for rich people and is slightly effeminate in character. It could be football and Notre Dame don’t align anymore. It doesn’t feel like a campus with Irish or Irishlike tough students with a chip on their shoulders.
Once again since 1996, “Next year……!”
The choice is clear.
In lieu of repeating all the valid points already mentioned:
A)Continue to believe ND belongs among the elite and be reminded a few times a season that they don’t or B) accept they are more often overrated and overhyped and redirect my attention elsewhere.
I choose B.
It’s been both fun and frustrating being a ND fan and follower.
Time for me to continue what life I have left minus the seasonal frustration of the ND overrated 🏈recurring hype. Over and out !
Steve Angeli needs to be heavily considered to start the next game for sure. Leonard’s performance was unacceptable especially for someone with his experience. Marcus Freeman needs to be coaching like his job is one the line, which it should be. Losing to Northern Illinois in your third year is embarrassing.
I so agree. Angeli has been committed to Notre Dame.
Unfortunately the season just got wasted. The Irish would have to pummel every opponent from now on. Doubtful this team can show up every week to do that
Spot on assessment. Time to move past Leonard and develop a ND guy. I was impressed with Carr’s ability to throw accurately on the move.
Have watched ND football for 60 years. Have never seen a worse quarterback or a worse offensive plan – ever, and I mean ever. 3 really good quarterbacks on the roster and they recruit Leonard. Didn’t learn a thing
from the last 2 years, did they?
I cannot really challenge any of that. ND will have a very hard time making the playoffs without winning out and putting a hurt on every time not named USC.
I don’t have as much of an issue with the 2nd and 1 call, but the miss has to be an overthrow. That throw reminded me of the Tulsa game. I don’t know how a D1 QB can underthrow a WR that badly.
If it’s me, I’d have a very short leash on Leonard and ensure that all of the QB’s get playing time to pave the way for 2025.
1) ND needs new QB now- not after next loss to Purdue. Get CJ Carr w/ 4 years of eligibility.
2) This team should not be ranked at all.
3) Poor play today by both OLine and DLine.
q) NIU QB had all day to pass
b) Our Oline often looked lost in pass protection and run game
4) Freeman needs to figure it out fast – to whom much is given, much is expected. He appears to be over his hea and out of gas. Probably stuck with him thru 2025 and maybe 2026. Payinge5 him $7 million per year is ridiculous.
5) Neither Denbrock nor our Defensive coaches are doing their jobs.
6) This new era of NIL require a different approach to motivate these kids to play their best – Perhaps our staff hasn’t figured that out.
I’ve been saying that since they brought the quarterback in here. Angeli won a bowl game for them and he is sitting on the bench. I’ve been following Notre Dame since the 1950’s and this was the most bone headed decision I have ever seen. Why recruit quarterbacks when you are going to import losers from the ACC
Agreed..need a better qb
1) This should not be a ranked team now.
2) QB must be changed immediately or this is probably a 6 to 7 win team at best.
3) This must be a run first Offense until a QB can be developed.
4( Offensive line needs some lessons in pass blocking
Longer term
1) recruiting for OLine has to to be better
2) Defense needs to be motivated – although they didn’t give up a ton of points, they were pushed around the whole game. They should have been lights out on the last drive when NIU got the FG. Instead they looked sloppy and weak.
At best, by year end, ND should be ranked about 15 based upon overall talent.
ND is never going to win another NC. It’s not going to happen. And after this embarrassing loss if anyone really believes they still have a shot at an NC this year I have a bridge to sell you.
ND has to go back to basics. They basically need to start over after the season has already started. And Frank even notes similar, though maybe not quite as embarrassing losses over the years. And in any of those cases did the Irish turn things around and dominate the rest of the season? None. In some cases the season went off the tracks altogether.
I liked Freeman. But my opinion of his coaching abilities took a significant hit. After the D/D/W and the BK years and all the false hopes I’m not much on giving a benefit of the doubt these days. I’m not saying fire Freeman. That would be a knee jerk reaction and a mistake. But I’m not sure he’s the elite coach everyone hope he is.
But honestly none of that matters. I’ve said before and I truly believe it. NDs days of NC are over. CFB itself has changed so much. It’s basically an NFL development league. And the PTBs at ND really don’t care, as long as the money keeps rolling in.
It’s said to see but just in the last 22 years I’ve been following ND closely the landscape has changed so much that teams like ND will not win NCs anymore.
You’re dumb, it’s the players not the coach. See
Jimbo fisher
Leonard is a disaster.He cannot start another game. He did not step up and deliver when he needed too.If no changes are made it is fair to question if Freeman is right for this job.Like the analyst said, “this type of game happens too much aT Notre Dame.”