JotCast | Notre Dame Football Live Chat March 12, 2025

Notre Dame Football Live Chat March 12, 2025

Eric Hansen

3:10

And that's going to do it for this week's chat. Thanks for all the great questions. As I mentioned at the top of the chat, we will do these once a week. They will NOT be on Wednesdays. I'm going to pencil it for Thursday at noon ET next week, and then we'll go week by week and fit it around spring football and WBB. Thanks again.

3:09

And then when they faced really good teams with really good coaches who figured some things out, ND was not ready with a counterpunch. That's my take.

3:08

Bill, thanks for your question and let me justify your question/confusion. I really like covering Niele Ivey, but I think she is really guarded in press conferences and interviews, pretty much universally. So, it's really difficult to know how closely her messaging to her team mirrors what she says to the media. My sense is not very much at all. She is also VERY guarded about injuries, which might explain some things, but I believe she sees as a tactical advantage. And maybe it is. So let's look at your question now. I do think emphasizing defense was the right messaging to her team, but not ONLY evolving on defense. There was work to do on offense that may not have gotten done during the win streak. (more)

Bill from St Joe, MI

3:02

Hi Eric, thanks very much for the chats…a WBB question. Do you think that Coach Ivey has perhaps over emphasized (if that’s possible) defense the last 1/4 of the season, as it seemed to me her constant postgame comment was “we’ve got to do a better job on defense” so that the players are all tensed up and when they cross the mid court line they are still so tense that they’ve somewhat lost their shot? Perhaps a crazy thought on my part, but shooting percentages are down.

Eric Hansen

3:02

OK and one more WBB question ...

3:01

Kevin from Calgary, I left your question in the queue, because while it's a really good one, it's very similar to one I led the chat off with last week.

3:00

Oh Beau. What an absolutely cool idea but man have you miscalculated how quickly my brain works. That would take some research and also a fixed time frame ... like 2000s on .. .since 1988, since Knute Rockne had acne? And a lot of research. I only have so much bandwidth, so that's not something I could do off the top of my head. A great topic to revisit this summer. Thanks for suggesting it.

Beau Harvey, Rockwood, TN

Sorry i accidentally pushed the send button.... Anyways, what teams do you have for... QB Univ? RB U? O-LINE U? D-LINE U? LB U? DB U? Even K/P U?

2:58

Had a big group of buddies over and we got to talking about All-Timers in all sports. We started talking about college football and how Notre Dame is considered Tight End U; some disagreed and said Iowa, but anyways. I believe ND makes a strong case for O-line U. Interested to see your "All Timers Univ" list.

Eric Hansen

2:58

2) Good question and one I get a lot, but spring is when you start to see those guys emerge, and I want to see it in action to give you a better answer.

2:57

Jordan, thanks for at least pretending you like my dad jokes. That'll get you out of the queue and into the chat every time! 1) GREAT question, because it will be tested time and again by the changes coming to college football, which kind of work against some of those cultural principles. Here's where I feel good about it -- Marcus Freeman's commitment to the culture, the players' belief and proof that culture wins and that Marcus has embraced the changes and tried to figure out how to maximize them instead of complaining about them and fighttng them. (more)

Jordan, from Seattle

2:54

Eric!!! - thank you for the great ND coverage always delivered with aplomb and humor. Two questions: (1) Do you get a sense that the 2024 team culture is sustainable? Was that a one off or has Marcus cultivated a perennial culture? (2) Who do you like as the leaders of this 25 squad? Realizing we dont have all the transfers here yet … but perhaps the Captains are already on campus? Thanks for your time and commitment to keeping us involved and informed…

Eric Hansen

2:53

Hi Scott. Again, not one-size-fits-all solution. But let's talk in general terms. First, is it a player you would like to flip back into your class and think you can? If so, you keep recruiting them. If there are players comparable, at the same level of your mutual interest, you move on to those. That is generally the case, especially in March. And there is a constant evaluation process from spring and summer 7-on-7 competitions, from camps, from actual games in the fall. And the process works the other way too. ND got two running back commitments early in the last cycle that eventually had some buyer's remorse. So they helped those players get back on the market and find better fits. And ND ended up taking a player they liked a lot better who was committed to BC in Nolan James Jr.

Scott from Bossier City

2:48

To keep the recruiting chats going. What is the reset for the top prospects we currently lost? Is it a total reset and reevaluation? When you lose the recruits at the top of your board do you now swing for prospects that were out of range or begin to start evaluating other recruits you may have overlooked? What's the outlook moving forward when the top of your list is now committed else where at least at some positions.

Eric Hansen

2:48

OK, we're going to go back and finish up with football ...

2:47

And if anyone knows of someone who is having trouble sleeping, you may want to read them my answer. I almost put myself to sleep. Good question, rambling answer ... I THINK.

2:46

The "I think" thing is not as automatic as you might think. Sometimes the person wants to be clear that this is an opinion and not necessarily fact, and I THINK that's an important distinction. So, I will tend to err on that side of including it. But I will clean up quotes from time to time, if they're repetitive. I will take out "um" and 'You know" unless it's used for emphasis. Marcus Freeman, for instance, likes to annotate with the word "right?" at the end of sentences. Sometimes it's just a habit, and sometimes it's meaningful, and in those cases I leave it in.

2:43

Hi Mr. Irwin. We had an executive editor at the Tribune who had the same point of view on that. And he strongly suggested we remove every single "I think" from the quotes. And if your geographical listing had said St. Louis instead of Florida, I'd swear it was him disguising his name. Let me give you kind of a general philosophy on quotes and then drill down on the "I think" part. I feel I owe it to the person I'm interviewing to not only quote them accurately, but also use enough of the quote to put it in the proper context. So, I will err on the side of letting the quote run on too long than the other way around. I feel I owe them that. (more)

Irwin from Florida

2:39

Hello Mr. Hansen. I’m amongst the many ND fans who have enjoyed your great insights into all things Irish. Your recent interview with Muffett McGraw was (not surprisingly) excellent. Now, here’s my nitpick - not of you - but of Coach McGraw (and of many other pundits.). She starts out a large number of her otherwise great opinions with “I think…” We know that’s what she thinks - she’s saying what she thinks. Is that something the reporter (you) can fix, or do journalistic ethics dictate you not to edit quotes? I think this is a crucial point of interest to all your readers.

Eric Hansen

2:39

That doesn't mean they WILL be fixed, but they can be. I don't think either of those players hit a wall. I'm not sure Maddy Westbeld is full healthy. And I think Olivia needed a water-in-the-face kind of moment, where teams were going to challenge her defense, and she needs to dig deep and have a counterpunch. I think this break is going to be very good for both of them. And thank you for the kind words.

2:37

Hi Jack. I'll start with the latter first. I think the intensity might have gotten sucked up in the 19-game winning streak and the ease at which those wins came -- 28 points, I think, on average. Then they were challenged in some close games and teams came up with some really good tactical counterpunches that I think surprised the players. A Duke team that they TKO's in mid February came up with a formula less than three weeks later to stifle the fastbreak game and ND didn't have an answer. So as my story with Muffet McGraw suggested, these are fixable problems. (more)

Jack, Strongsville,Ohio

2:32

Hi Eric from balmy Northeast Ohio as you well know words that are seldom said in mid March. Two questions on WBB. One. Do you feel that coming off of injuries that Olivia Miles and Maddy Wesbald have hit the wall/run out of gas at least temporarily this season. Two. In watching the Duke game the announcers were saying Notre Dame had to have some urgency. Where has the intensity gone? Thanks as always for your great work.

Eric Hansen

2:32

With the COVID exemption being phased out, and you're always threading the needle a little bit more with ND's academic and "fit" preferences, but I think ND is competitive in the NIL space and is a place where players want to play. So plenty of work ahead with some unknowns, but a workable scenario. Wouldn't you want to play with Hannah Hidalgo? Who wouldn't?

2:29

Jim, I love old-timers, so I think technically I am one! And I am all for trying something new. I do it all the time. It's good for the soul. ... Jim. I think you are panicking prematurely, but raising some valid concerns in a timely fashion. I think the reason it creates more urgency is that incoming freshman Leah Macy, the replacement in essence for Maddy Westbeld, could very well miss a large part or all of next season with a knee injury. So let's look at who is definitely coming back (barring a portal exit). Hannah Hidalgo, Cass Prosper, KK Bransford (who is redshirting this year), Emma Risch coming off more surgery. Up front, it will be Kate Koval and likely Kylee Watson. Olivia Miles has an option I don't expect her to exercise to come back. We'll see. So you need another guard and probably three front-court players if no Macy. That's not a heavy lift in the portal these days. There are lots of very good teams that have that kind of roster construction. You bring up a point about a shallower pool (MORE)

Jim in Anthony TX

2:21

An old timer trying something new and by the way I really enjoy these weekly chats. I have really enjoyed WBB for about the last 10 years and have noticed that we never seem to have big (3-4) recruiting classes. We do well with one 5* and then pffff. This year we have only one coming in, but we lose 5-6 players. Now with the covid bonus expired I think the transfer portal will be slimmed down with regard to fifth year players. Unless we strike gold in the portal, I fear we will have a very thin bench. Am I panicking prematurely

Eric Hansen

2:21

OK let's get into some women's hoops questions and we'll circle back to football. So if you have football questions, get them in the portal ASAP.

2:20

And Happy St. Patrick's Day, Adam. I do appreciate your questions even if my answers had a little bit of a "now, get off my lawn" vibe to them. No really, get off my lawn. The lawn people just sprayed stuff on it.

2:19

As far as what's labeled as question 3 and is actually 5, 6 and 7. ... I like this staff, but for me to form an assessment, I need to see them do some actual coaching and talk to the players, etc. Then I'll be happy to give you my impressions. I am not a believer that "winning the press conference" is a sustainable measure of a coach, but it sure makes for an interesting first impression.

2:17

Here are the top 12 teams from the 2021 recruiting rankings, players who were seniors in 2024. How many of those 12 teams made the 12-team playoff? Five. The recruiting rankings for the other seven? 16. Texas, 25. Penn State, 35. Tennessee, 57. SMU, 59. Arizona State, 62. Indiana, 74. Boise State. YES, quality recruiting is important but team recruiting rankings are not the end-all, be-all. (more)

https://images.jotcast.com/chat-images/20590/20590-GFL02-RI7LI-NPTCA-2...

2:10

I've explained Chad Bowden's persona earlier in the chat. I think being bombastic has a limited shelf life in that role ,, and even more so if the team on the field can't back up the words. 2) The "front office" is coming along well. My first impressions of the Mike Martin hire at GM are very positive. More work to do surrounding him with great people. But don't you think Marcus Freeman has a pretty good track record of that so far? answer to part 2C or question 4 ... The point you are missing is that recruiting ranking is the starting point, not the ending point. RETENTION is overlooked. The portal additions are overlooked. Does ND win the Georgia game without the transfers? All those things need to be taken together.

2:02

Adam, of course I am excited for spring football to kick off. C'mon now. That's like asking me if I'm geeked about it being 73 degrees here (allegedly) on Friday. 1) On guys popping in the weight room, I am not a big proponent of reporting that stuff unless I've seen it myself. And usually it's way more bluster than anything tangible. I'll be happy to share those when I can verify them in the spring. 2) OK you realize question 2, is actually a whole bunch of questions. I think we're getting close to that 17-part threshold. I'll strike it up to how they teach math in Dayton or the rescinded "no drinking" rule. (more)

Adam (Dayton, OH)

1:57

Eric, are you excited for spring sessions to kick off? A few questions. 1.) Is there word of anyone "popping" in winter conditioning/who are the new names expected to break out? 2.) Am I being an overly-sensitive fan in thinking that Chad Bowden is going out of his way to take shots at ND and even Marcus Freeman? How is the restructuring of the recruiting staff going? Do we fans have a chance to see this operation hit the levels that we thought/hoped we were getting in Marcus Freeman, or is ND destined to stay in the bottom half of the top 10 as a recruiting ceiling? 3.) Thought last years' coaching staff was the best ND staff in recent memory. Does this year's keep pace overall or is it slightly worse? Where is this staff on a national level in your opinion? Happy St. Pat's Day to you as things get interesting next week!

Eric Hansen

1:56

Dave, I used my phone-a-friend lifeline to make sure I was giving you the right info, and it's a full load of classes for the freshman early enrollees.

Dave from DC

1:55

What sort of courseload to early enrollee players have? 12 credits? 15? Does it vary? I know that freshmen often have a tough time adjusting to college life while being on the football team. I imagine that's magnified with kids who should be seniors in high school.

Eric Hansen

1:55

Len!!! You sly dog, putting the extra exclamation points at the end. Four-and-a-half gold stars for you. Bravo!!! First, here is a LINK that runs down every player who will miss spring practice or who will be limited because of injury/surgery/rehab and why. Schrauth was scheduled to have left ankle surgery, which is not the ankle he injured during the season in September and missed games because of. And I don't think he was ever close to 100 percent last season.

Len from the Jersey Shore

1:50

Hello Eric, What was the Billy S injury? What was the treatment? Did he have it during the CFP championship game? Thanks for hosting!!!

Eric Hansen

1:49

The chemistry can and will come in fall camp. And as Bob Morton has said on Football Never Sleeps and our Into The eNDzone shows, game reps are much, much, much more valuable in fostering chemistry than practice reps. They just are. So there will be evolution throughout the season. The good news again is, they formed a lot of that LAST YEAR. And I'm not sure if you're asking me if ND will have TEs entering the portal or about TEs on other teams that might be attractive after spring. On both counts, I think it's smarter to watch some practices to see how those TEs are playing before making a prediction.

1:46

You figure by the second week of fall camp, if not sooner, the No. 1 QB will be named, and additional reps with the 1s should help bring the process along, so that QB is ready to roll Aug, 31 in Miami. For the offensive line, it's again figuring out who first the best where. Theoretically, you'll have all five starters with prior starting experience. Last year, there were six collective starts at the start of the season. Aamil Wagner had 16 last year alone. Spring is not about forming chemistry. It's seeing where people fit best and what the best combos are and working on technique. (more)

1:43

Hi Sean. Let me get to your questions. Let's talk about the process for QBs and O-line separately, but in both cases, getting the personnel right supersedes expediting anything, They don't have any games in May or June. For the QBs, they are at an advantage in that none of the three competing for the job is doing with a new offense, a new offensive coordinator or a new QBs coach. And in working through the competition it's important that all three are developing, and to a lesser but still important extent freshman Blake Hebert. If there are departures after spring practice, then Gino Guidugli, Marcus Freeman and Mike Denbrock will have to re-examine their options as far as backups, perhaps. (more)

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