Tag: Marcus Freeman

Notre Dame isn’t on list of top college football jobs

Notre Dame isn’t even in the top 10 when it comes to best jobs in the country.

The Athletic did some checking around to see what the best job in college football is. Notre Dame did not make the top five.

The outlet polled 50 people working in the sport, including head coaches, assistant coaches, analysts and recruiters. First-place votes were worth five points and second-place votes were worth four, and on down the line. There were a few teams tied for fifth place, in that case, 1 extra point was added on.

The list ended up being Georgia, Texas, Ohio State, Alabama and LSU.

No big surprises there.

What is perhaps surprising is that Notre Dame was ranked 12th with just six points — meaning the school only managed six votes for 5th place.

Every photo from Notre Dame’s triumph over Louisville
Sep 28, 2024; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) leaves the field after defeating the Louisville Cardinals at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-Imagn Images

It’s not said why the Irish aren’t higher, but we suspect the school’s tougher academic standards play a part. The top five schools have also been in national title contender mode more often in recent years.

The top five teams also have strong NIL and vast recruiting bases from their home states, and all are national brands.

Notre Dame, of course, is a national brand and isn’t necessarily lacking in resources, including NIL, but it may not be quite at the level of those top 5.

That may change if Marcus Freeman can make the program into a consistent playoff contender.

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The inevitable has happened, Deuce Knight has flipped from Notre Dame

Knight has finally officially moved on from the Irish

For months we have been waiting to see where Notre Dame football 2025 quarterback [autotag]Deuce Knight[/autotag] would ultimately end up.

Unfortunately, the smoke to the Auburn Tigers was true, as the lefty flipped his verbal from the Irish on Wednesday evening. This is a big blow to Notre Dame’s efforts in the cycle, as they do not have another quarterback commitment as of right now.

The nation’s No. 29 overall prospect according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings had just officially visited the Tigers this past weekend. He never made it back to South Bend following his official visit in mid-June.

Knight was at the head of multiple prospects in-class recruitment, but he will not join any of them playing for the Irish. With the news, Notre Dame’s 247Sports Composite class ranking took a hit, going from No. 10 to No. 13.

It won’t easy for the Irish to replace Knight, as the majority of top quarterback prospects have already made their decisions. We will see how head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] and offensive coordinator [autotag]Mike Denbrock[/autotag] handle the situation.

Deuce Knight will once again not be visiting Notre Dame this weekend
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Every photo from Notre Dame’s triumphant win over Louisville

Check out all the great photos from Notre Dame’s win over Louisville

It was a great Saturday in South Bend this weekend, as the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team held off the Louisville Cardinals to win 31-24.

The top-25 win makes that No. 9 for head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] in his third year, which is close to besting an Irish record that was started in 1940. Notre Dame moved to 4-1 on the year, as they continue to make their way to a potential [autotag]College Football Playoff[/autotag] spot.

The game against the Cardinals had a bit of everything for both teams, as multiple big plays happened early and although they didn’t span the whole game, it was still extremely exciting.

You can re-live all of the action below, photo-style, as these are the best shots of Notre Dame’s win over Louisville.

Marcus Freeman could tie a Notre Dame record with another top-25 win

Is it in the cards for Freeman?

While many aren’t happy with Notre Dame football head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag]’s slip ups against average at best teams, he’s doing some great work against top competition.

The win against Louisville was No. 9 in his three years in South Bend, which is right behind the school record for most wins against top-25 opponents to start one’s career. [autotag]Frank Leahy[/autotag] is the current holder, with 10 wins, started all the way back in 1941.

It seemed at the beginning of the year that Florida State would be one of those opponents in that range, but they have since fallen hard and won’t be ranked when the Irish face them in early November. Most likely USC will be ranked, as they are currently ranked, and should stay that way after they rallied to defeat Wisconsin on Saturday afternoon.

There is potential that Navy could eek its way into the top-25 as well, and a big time bowl matchup would give Freeman yet another opportunity to either break or tie the record.

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How social media reacted to Notre Dame-Louisville: Irish side

How did you feel about this game?

Notre Dame was looking to go into its first bye week on the right note. Louisville came into South Bend with a potent offense, but the Irish’s defense had lived up to expectations in every game thus far regardless of how well the team as a whole had performed. The question was whether the entire Irish squad could support that defense.

The answer to that question was a resounding yes as the Irish built on an impressive first quarter to defeat the Cardinals, 31-24. The contest had a few iffy spots but otherwise was well-played. [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] and his staff surely will want to clean up those spots before their next game against Stanford in two weeks.

Did Irish fans feel confident after this win though? Did they wish they had seen more dominance, or were they merely happy to see their team continue to control its fate as best it can at this point? Here’s an idea based on these reactions we found on social media:

Marcus Freeman updates Boubacar Traore’s injury status

Coach updates us on what he knows about Traore’s injury

It was another win for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, but there was still a major loss over the course of the game.

Already one of the starting defensive ends, [autotag]Jordan Botelho[/autotag], will be out for the remainder of the year with a knee injury. His replacement, [autotag]Boubacar Traore[/autotag], had been dominant since he entered the starting lineup.

Though last week, he was the nation’s freshman leader in sacks with three, and it seemed like he was well on his way to adding to that number against Louisville. Unfortunately, he went down with an injury in the second quarter, and did not return to the field.

Traore was seen roaming the sidelines with his left knee wrapped in ice, and following the game many wanted head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] to expand on the injury. The update didn’t give us much, as he said that he knows it’s a lower body injury and that he’d be out the remainder of the game, but didn’t know any more.

We should know more on Monday after Notre Dame’s medial team will get a chance to give him a full examination.

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Notre Dame football’s game trailer for Louisville has dropped

Too hot for TV!

You know it is almost game day when the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football social media account releases its newest trailer.

As we have seen during the week, there was some doubt that the Irish would wear green, then yesterday it was confirmed that they would. The Notre Dame captains made the decision, as head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] explained earlier in the week.

Regarding the actual game, the Louisville Cardinals boast multiple players that won’t be easy for Notre Dame to stop. We’ve made our predictions as to how Saturday afternoon will play out, along with some of the other top games across college football during Week 5.

The theme of old school hip-hop marches on, as they used one of my personal favorite songs “Da Rockwilder” by Redman and Method Man. Check out below the latest Notre Dame football game trailer as they welcome in the Louisville Cardinals.

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Notre Dame confirmed to wear green jerseys vs. Louisville

Dress appropriately if you’re going to the game.

For a while, there was doubt about whether Notre Dame would match its fans for the annual “Irish Wear Green” game against Louisville. Part of that has to do with the fact that the university never officially released images of the uniform combination for such a game. Those doubts can be put to rest now.

[autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] has announced that the Irish will indeed wear green jerseys against the Cardinals, a decision he indicated earlier in the week that he would leave up to the captains. There’s no telling exactly how long that decision-making process was, but it’s been completed.

Although we don’t for certain right now what the uniform will look like, Blue and Gold Illustrated has learned that the green jerseys will be worn with white pants along with the usual gold helmets.

The Irish have an all-time record of 41-13-1 when wearing green jerseys, splitting their first two such games under Freeman.

The hope is the Irish won’t repeat what happened when they wore the jerseys last season. They came agonizingly close to upsetting Ohio State, only to hamper themselves by having only 10 defensive players on the field when the Buckeyes scored the winning touchdown with one second left.

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Could Matthew Sluka come to Notre Dame?

Could the disgruntled UNLV signal caller come to Notre Dame?

University of Nevada Las Vegas quarterback Matthew Sluka wants out after an allegedly promised NIL deal seems to have gone sour.

Could he end up in South Bend, playing for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish?

Sluka is sitting out after he says he didn’t receive a potential name, image and likeness (NIL) payment. The whole story is fascinating and provides insight into how NIL and the transfer portal have changed college football.

It’s worth reading about, but it has us wondering — if Sluka were to leave a competitive Running Rebels team, could he play for the Fighting Irish?

 

To be clear, we’re speculating, not reporting. Sluka has left the team because he believes he was owed money in a promised NIL deal from UNLV coaches. The school claims Sluka’s agent made demands it saw as potential violations of NCAA rules.

There’s no sign yet of Sluka’s future moves and no indication he’s heading to the Irish. Still, it’s fun to think about since current Fighting Irish starting quarterback Riley Leonard is a senior and will be leaving South Bend at season’s end. Leonard, like Sam Hartman before him, came to the Irish via the transfer portal. Sluka has a year of eligibility left now that he’s taken his redshirt year.

If Sluka enters the portal, a lot of teams will want his services. That very well might include the Irish.

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Will Notre Dame football be wearing green jersey’s this week vs. Louisville

There could be a change in uni’s this weekend

While many of us expected that the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team would be wearing its green jersey’s against Louisville this weekend, head coach [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] put some doubts on that idea during his Monday press conference.

The Irish coach mentioned that they will wear them in his opening comments, but when asked again later, he wasn’t quite sure. Freeman is going to meet with the captains on Monday afternoon to get their input into the situation, and they will make the final decision what is going to be worn on Saturday.

It makes plenty of sense for Freeman to give the option to his players, as they will be the ones having to wear them. It’s also great to see that the head coach is giving an opportunity for the team leaders to make the choice, something you don’t see too much across the nation.

Freeman is showing once again, that he is a players-coach, and just wants the best for the young men in his program.

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