Notre Dame Coach Marcus Freeman Faces Big Questions Before the Season Starts

Notre Dame head football coach Marcus Freeman met with reporters on Tuesday to talk about his team's plans for the upcoming season. He answered questions about an injured player, a tough backup quarterback decision, and the team's history of slow starts in September. The Fighting Irish are expected to be one of the best teams in the country, but Freeman knows there is still a lot of work to do before the first game at Lambeau Field against Wisconsin.

One of the biggest concerns for Notre Dame is offensive lineman Charles Jagusah. He was hurt in an ATV accident in Wyoming more than a year ago and has had at least five surgeries on his arm. The injury included a compound fracture and nerve damage, which means the bone broke through the skin and the nerves in his arm were also hurt. Freeman said Jagusah will not be ready when the season opens, but he believes his player will eventually return to the field.

Jagusah is considered a very talented player. As a freshman, he started the Sun Bowl after two other linemen chose not to play. Two years ago, he came back from a different injury to play in the Orange Bowl and even the national title game. Freeman said the goal right now is simply to help Jagusah get healthy enough to play football again. 'At some point Charles will play football, he will,' Freeman said.

Without Jagusah, Notre Dame still has a strong offensive line. Players like Will Black, Anthonie Knapp, Ashton Craig, and Guerby Lambert are expected to be starters. However, two players — Sullivan Absher and Matt Augustine — will compete to fill the spot Jagusah would have played. Freeman hopes Jagusah might be able to return later in the season, just like he did two years ago.

Another big challenge is finding a backup quarterback. Starter CJ Carr is the clear number one, but behind him are three players — Blake Hebert, Noah Grubbs, and Teddy Jarrard — who have never played in a college game. Quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli must figure out who is best suited to be the backup before the season starts. The tricky part is giving those backup players enough practice time without taking too many reps away from Carr, who also needs work with a new group of wide receivers.

Freeman said this is a 'unique challenge.' If everything goes well, the backup quarterback may not play much at all this season. Last year's backup, Kenny Minchey, played only 87 snaps, and none of them were in important moments. The year before, Steve Angeli played just 103 snaps, but a few of those snaps in a big game helped Notre Dame move on to the national title game. Freeman said the team must name a backup by Week 1, but that player might not keep the job all season.

Freeman also talked about Notre Dame's history of struggling in September. Under Freeman, the Irish have never finished September without a loss. Some of those losses were surprising, like a defeat to Northern Illinois — a much smaller school — even though Notre Dame ended up playing in the national title game that same year. Last year, back-to-back losses to Miami and Texas A&M by a total of just four points hurt the team's playoff chances early on.

Freeman said he has asked everyone in the program — from coaches to trainers to nutritionists — to look closely at what went wrong. He does not want to change everything all at once, but he does want to make improvements. The staff spent the summer rethinking how they run training camp, especially after last year's defense allowed too many big plays in its first two games. Freeman said the team will keep asking hard questions and making adjustments even after the season begins.