Notre Dame Notebook: Marcus Freeman Talks Offensive Line, Defense, Wide Receiver Production

Notre Dame head football coach Marcus Freeman addressed a number of topics as the team kicked off its week of Marshall preparation

While Saturday night’s season-opening 21-10 loss to No. 2 Ohio State ended in disappointment for Notre Dame and first-year head coach Marcus Freeman in his return to Ohio Stadium, the fifth-ranked Irish showed promise on the road against an Ohio State team that is now 19-1 at home and 35-4 overall under head coach Ryan Day.

Notre Dame now must get ready for Marshall, who is coming off a 55-3 victory over Norfolk State. Freeman addressed the loss to Ohio State and the matchup against Marshall during his Monday press conference.

Below are some key takeaways from the press conference

On The Defensive Performance vs. Ohio State

Defensively, Notre Dame held a potent Buckeye offensive attack to just seven points for the entirety of the first half and much of the third quarter. At halftime, Ohio State had just 50 rushing yards and 149 total yards as a team. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter that the Irish defense began to falter, with the Buckeyes putting up 85 rushing yards and 121 total yards in the final 15 minutes alone. The majority of that production came on a 14-play, 95-yard scoring drive that took seven minutes of game time and put Ohio State up 21-10 and the game out of reach.

“I think [the defense] did a really good job of trying to stop the run until that last quarter and the last sixteen minutes of the game,” Freeman remarked. “You look at that last drive of 95 yards and the execution, it was an accumulation of missed tackles, an accumulation of missed fits and you know what, [OSU] has a really good offensive line and two really good running backs, so you have to give credit to them and their execution.”

On that game-sealing drive, the Buckeyes rushed 10 times for 64 yards.

“We have to be better, when a team says hey we’re going to run the ball and try to run the clock out, we have to be able to step up and get a stop," Freeman continued. "I don’t want to overlook the first three quarters and how the defense stopped the run but we have to really focus on when it matters most do we execute our game plan."

On The Offensive Line - Jarrett Patterson's Status

Heading into the matchup, Freeman planned on trying to win the time of possession battle by establishing the run game. Saturday night the Irish rushed 30 times for just 76 total yards, an average of 2.5 yards per carry. Sophomore quarterback Tyler Buchner was also sacked three times.

“[The O-Line] had a huge challenge; that defensive line at Ohio State was really talented, really good," Freeman said. "I thought early in the game we didn't handle the movement as well as I wanted to. I thought they settled in and did a better job as the game went forward, but it was a challenge and they really battled."

The unit's lack of experience is something Freeman pointed to as an issue in the opener.

“We've got a young offensive line and a new offensive line coach and I've been really happy with what I've seen, and for them to be able to adjust to the different looks we were getting," noted the Irish head coach. "[Ohio State] was bringing pressures and movement all over the place and they got it down and got it honed in.”

It didn’t help that the Irish were without two-time captain and All-American left guard Jarrett Patterson, who suffered a foot sprain in mid-August. According to Freeman, Patterson tried to go through warmups before the game but ultimately wasn’t able to play. 

Patterson remains questionable for the Marshall game but will be re-evaluated throughout the week. 

“If he’s ready to go we’re going to play him this week,” Freeman affirmed.

On The Lack Of Wide Receiver Production

Notre Dame ran 48 plays on offense in the game, but the Irish only attempted 18 passes and managed just 49 passing yards in the second half. Out of Buchner’s 10 total completions, only three went to wide receivers.

“Again, from my direction down it was, I want to establish the run and I want to be able to control the clock," Freeman explained. "But, as you looked at the numbers it still was pretty even in terms of runs versus passes.

“.... You talk about young guys, Braden Lenzy has been here for a while, Matt Salerno has been here but hasn't played much meaningful minutes as a wideout in the past, so it's a young group that has to continue to develop, they have talent, but we have to develop them.”

Freeman noted he was content with the performance of the offense until the fourth quarter.

“I thought, for what I asked as the head coach our offense to do and Coach (Tommy) Rees to do, I really was happy with the way we executed, really until that fourth quarter where we didn't do what we needed to do on either side of the ball and on special teams either.”

Home Opener For Freeman

The Irish now look ahead to this upcoming Saturday’s home opener against Marshall. It will be the first time Freeman leads his team out of the tunnel as Notre Dame’s head coach, a long-awaited moment for the Irish’s new leader.

“I’m excited for my first home game as a head coach here at Notre Dame Stadium," Freeman said with a big smile on his face. "It’s something you dream about, and ever since I’ve been named head coach I’ve been looking forward to this moment to be able to lead our team into this stadium.”

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