This is exactly what we talk about when we talk about getting Notre Dame to the next tier of college football. Things are in a really good place but they’ve got a considerable way to go to get where everyone wants them to be and Freeman clearly understands the only way to get there is by recruiting the hell out of the high school ranks.
Cincinnati is the case here but take into account Notre Dame has had 12 first round NFL draft picks since 2000. That’s not a bad number, sure, and that covers parts of the Bob Davie, Tyrone Willingham and Charlie Weis’s eras as well as Brian Kelly’s, but it is nothing in comparison to the programs Notre Dame wants to be considered among.
Alabama had six players taken in the first round of the 2021 draft and two more this past season. That’s the first round we’re talking, not all seven rounds.
Georgia had seven players have their names called through the first two rounds this past draft and 15 players in total. When you see it that way it’s hardly a surprise they were able to accomplish what they accomplished this past season.
In short, Freeman wasn’t at all disrespectful in talking about the program he used to coach in Cincinnati, but instead crystal clear about what needs to take place if Notre Dame is going to not only reach the College Football Playoff one day, but make some noise in it once they’re there.
[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbz1mmy7gev0xbr player_id=none image=https://fightingirishwire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]
[listicle id=56231]