So it sounds like the LSU deal is for 7-10 years in excess of $100M. 7 years $100M is over $14M/year, can't fault him for that. It does seem like a weird fit though. An Irish/Catholic from Boston who's coached his entire career in the Midwest now goes to the Bayou at 60 years old. I guess he felt he took Notre Dame as far as he could. I do enjoy some people on twitter referring to him as Touchdown Judas.
Successors: Marcus Freeman - Defensive Coordinator Notre Dame. Your boy paje's top choice for the job. The program is on solid ground right now, they've been a top 6 program the last five years. Freeman has a ton of energy, players love him and he's shown to be a very good recruiter. Promote him to head couch, Mike Elston from D line coach to D coordinator, keep Tommy Rees as O coordinator and keep this moving. I'd be interest to see what Rees could do if he's out from BK's shadow. I think he's a creative playcaller that has been handcuffed by Kelly a bit these last two years. I honestly not even that upset about BK leaving, but if he takes Freeman, Elston and Rees with him then I'd be upset.
Luke Fickell - Head Coach Cincinnati - I'd be happy with this hire as well. Rumor is Ohio St. and ND were the two jobs he would jump at. Marcus Freeman was his D coordinator at Cinncy before going to ND, so if he could keep Freeman on staff that would be amazing (I think Freeman goes with Kelly if he isn't offered the job, but its worth noting he worked for Fickell very recently). This probably only happens if Cinncy loses Saturday and his knocked out of the playoffs. I can't see him leaving when he can coach his undefeated team in the CFP and I don't think ND can wait until January to make this hire, especially with the early signing period for recruits.
Matt Campbell - Head Coach Iowa St. - The first year his team has some expectations and he coaches a Preseason top 10 team to a 7-5 record. No thank you.
Jeff Brohm - Head Coach Purdue - Dynamic offensive mind and quality recruiter. I can talk myself into it, but for me its a step down from Freeman or Fickell.
Urb - Head Coach Jacksonville Jaguars - Not gonna happen, but I'd be into it.
At the end of the day Brian Kelly was out of leverage at Notre Dame. He was under contract until 2024 and the only thing left for him to do was win a national championship. At LSU he has a five year window, easier standards to get recruits and the ability to leverage more money if he shows progress in years 2 or 3. Stick with a 3 year window and no more money coming in, or get a 5 year window, double your salary off the bat and have a potential to get more $ down the road. It probably wasn't a difficult decision.
So this is pretty much exactly what happened. I am very excited. This Notre Dame face turn is completely unexpected and won't last long, but it seems the general public is pulling for this team (or at least this story) after the way Kelly left.
Now Georgia needs to take care of Bama and Houston, Baylor or Dong's Hawkeyes need to pull off an upset. Get this team into the CFP and see what happens.
Sorry my Hawkeyes didn't exactly hold up their end of the bargain.
Anyway, I was listening to Pete Sampson on the Solid Verbal this morning (Pete Sampson. Solid Verbal.) He said that he doesn't think they would have jumped to Freeman quite so quickly if Fickell was available, but since he wasn't, they were just ready to go with Freeman. As you said, apparently everyone loves the guy. Sampson also said that Matt Campbell (Matt. Campbell.) pretty much flat out told Notre Dame "I want to come coach there" and Notre Dame didn't even really bother to even open negotiations. That's a hell of a commitment for a 30 something dude who's never been a head coach.
So this is pretty much exactly what happened. I am very excited. This Notre Dame face turn is completely unexpected and won't last long, but it seems the general public is pulling for this team (or at least this story) after the way Kelly left.
Now Georgia needs to take care of Bama and Houston, Baylor or Dong's Hawkeyes need to pull off an upset. Get this team into the CFP and see what happens.
Sorry my Hawkeyes didn't exactly hold up their end of the bargain.
Anyway, I was listening to Pete Sampson on the Solid Verbal this morning (Pete Sampson. Solid Verbal.) He said that he doesn't think they would have jumped to Freeman quite so quickly if Fickell was available, but since he wasn't, they were just ready to go with Freeman. As you said, apparently everyone loves the guy. Sampson also said that Matt Campbell (Matt. Campbell.) pretty much flat out told Notre Dame "I want to come coach there" and Notre Dame didn't even really bother to even open negotiations. That's a hell of a commitment for a 30 something dude who's never been a head coach.
Sampson is very well connected in the program, so I believe him. He's also said on another podcast that if Tommy Rees goes with Kelly to LSU, Marcus Freeman is probably not the head coach of Notre Dame right now. The combo of Freeman/Rees staying basically kept this class in tact. If Rees left, I'm guessing a good portion of the offense recruits end up decommitting. I think the early signing period really presses the issue on ADs to fill these coaching vacancies.
I don't get the Matt Campbell hype. One top 25 finish in six years at Iowa St. I know its Iowa St., but still. His best record was 9-3 and as I already said, the one year his team actually has some expectations and is a preseason top 10, they finish 7-5. If anything, Campbell seems like a program builder, but that's not what ND needs at this point. That's what they needed in 2010 and Kelly has build this program back to a consistent top 10 team. What they need is for someone to take them over the hump that Brian Kelly could never seem to get them past. Is that guy Marcus Freeman? We'll see. But I would rather take a chance on a high upside, potential home run hire who's already proved he can recruit at Notre Dame; keep continuity in staff for the players and recruits and see what happens rather than hand the keys to Matt Campbell.
Campbell would have been the safer higher and Notre Dame usually makes the safer mover, thats why I'm glad to see they are taking a chance.
I had no idea that Notre Dame has never played an FCS opponent. UCLA plays one this year too, which leaves USC the only remaining FBS school who hasn't.
I had no idea that Notre Dame has never played an FCS opponent. UCLA plays one this year too, which leaves USC the only remaining FBS school who hasn't.
I though one of the service academies was on that list too, but that doesn't appear to be the case. I believe they open in Ireland against Navy the week before, so it makes sense to schedule an FCS opponent at home the following week.
I had no idea that Notre Dame has never played an FCS opponent. UCLA plays one this year too, which leaves USC the only remaining FBS school who hasn't.
I thought one of the service academies was on that list too, but that doesn't appear to be the case. I believe they open in Ireland against Navy the week before, so it makes sense to schedule an FCS opponent at home the following week.
I'm not someone who gets all worked up about announcers, but this is a big downgrade. Plenty of ND fans wanted a grad to be part of the announcing team so now they got their wish with Jac C. I prefer a seasoned announcing team. I thought Tirico and Brees were great last season.
Tyler Buchner - The true sophomore from San Diego takes over at Quarterback. Buchner was injured his sophomore year of high school and his senior year was cancelled due to COVID, so he only played one year of H.S. ball. His stats for that year were 4,474 passing yards and 53 TDs plus 1,610 rushing yards and 28TDs in 13 games. UEM - is that good? He played sparely last year in relief of Jack Coen and had a package that featured read option and designed QB runs. The main concern is protecting the football and not turning it over. If he can do that, the offense should be pretty good.
Marcus Freeman - Head Coach. Not a brand new face, but new head coach. If you look back to page paje 1 of this thread, you'll see that I had defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman as a new face last year. Here's what I said about him:
Marcus Freeman - new D coordinator after Clark Lea took the head job at Vandy. Freeman is coming from Cincy where he was D coordinator there and was the hot off season hire picking ND over LSU. There are some rumors that he could be the successor to Brian Kelly. The defense has a lot of talent so we'll see how he uses it.
Pretty spot on with the successor role, huh. Freeman has definitely brought a new energy to the program. Brian Kelly's message got a little stale after 12 years as head coach, so a new, younger, more charismatic voice is a welcome addition for this team. It has translated to recruiting success almost immediately, we'll see how it goes for on-field success and in game decision making. The last five season Brian Kelly had an astounding ability to win every game he was supposed to win and lose every game he was supposed to lose. The criticism was that he treated big game like a "business trip" and didn't have his team's ready to go. I think Freeman will get the team playing with more emotion in big games, but we'll see if it translates to success. We find out right away. Al Golden was hired to replace Freeman as Defensive Coordinator.
Brandon Joseph - All-American Safety transfer from Northwestern. Replaces Kyle Hamilton at safety who was a first round draft pick of the Ravens.
Old faces:
Michael Mayer - The best tight end in college football and a future first round pick
Isiah Foskey - Edge rusher who had 11 sacks and 6 forced fumbles last year. Another good season turns him into a first round pick as well.
Blake Fisher/Joe Alt/Jarrett Patterson - Basically the whole offensive line returns from last year. Fisher and Alt are sophomore tackles that will anchor the line and Patterson will be a four year starter moving from center to guard. The biggest news is that Harry Hiestand returns as O-line coach after a four year absence. Remember the Quentin Nelson/Zach Martin/Ronnie Stanley/Mike McGlinchey O-lines that Notre Dame had? Those were Harry Hiestand lines. The word is that he hated Brian Kelly which is why he left the first time, and then immediately came back after Kelly left.
Breakout candidate
I think it might be Foskey getting some national buzz and all-American honors if he can put together another good season. If forced to go with someone on offense, I'll pick WR Lorenzo Styles. Last year as a freshman he had 24 receptions for 344 yards and a TD. He started the Fiesta Bowl in the slot where he had 8 catches, 136 yards and a touchdown. I expected him to play mainly in the slot this year. The guy loves slot, he's all your mom's favorite player.
Strengths/Weaknesses
I think the strengths will be up front. Offensive line and defensive line. Tight End as well. The offensive skill positions outside of Mayer feature a lot of talent, but unproven and not a ton of production to this point. The defense (linebackers and secondary) are kind of the opposite. A lot of experience and playing time but have been much maligned in their performance in big games. If Brandon Joseph can step up and maybe CB Cam Hart, they should be able to hold their own defensively.
The Schedule:
9/3 - @ohio St. (#2) 9/10 - Marshall 9/17 - Cal 9/24 @unc 10/8 - @byu (#25) 10/15 - Stanford 10/22 - UNLV 10/29 - @syracuse 11/5 - Clemson (#4) 11/12 - @navy 11/19 - Boston College 11/26 @usc (#14)
Preseason Rank #5 (AP and Coaches). I don't think this is the #5 team in the country. Too many unknowns especially with new head coach and new QB. I would have thought they'd fall somewhere in the #8 -#12 range. Those 4 ranked teams plus B.C. (with Notre Dame transfer Phil Jurkovec at QB) are going to be toss ups. If they can go 3-2 in those games and beat the rest of the teams they should beat, a 10-2 season would be a nice first year for Freeman with many guys coming back for 2023 and some very good recruiting classes coming in.
Fans
We're been over this guys, the co-eds are just a level down for the other major college football programs. So here's some random model in a shamrock bikini.
Tyler Buchner - The true sophomore from San Diego takes over at Quarterback. Buchner was injured his sophomore year of high school and his senior year was cancelled due to COVID, so he only played one year of H.S. ball. His stats for that year were 4,474 passing yards and 53 TDs plus 1,610 rushing yards and 28TDs in 13 games. UEM - is that good? He played sparely last year in relief of Jack Coen and had a package that featured read option and designed QB runs. The main concern is protecting the football and not turning it over. If he can do that, the offense should be pretty good.
Marcus Freeman - Head Coach. Not a brand new face, but new head coach. If you look back to page paje 1 of this thread, you'll see that I had defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman as a new face last year. Here's what I said about him:
Marcus Freeman - new D coordinator after Clark Lea took the head job at Vandy. Freeman is coming from Cincy where he was D coordinator there and was the hot off season hire picking ND over LSU. There are some rumors that he could be the successor to Brian Kelly. The defense has a lot of talent so we'll see how he uses it.
Pretty spot on with the successor role, huh. Freeman has definitely brought a new energy to the program. Brian Kelly's message got a little stale after 12 years as head coach, so a new, younger, more charismatic voice is a welcome addition for this team. It has translated to recruiting success almost immediately, we'll see how it goes for on-field success and in game decision making. The last five season Brian Kelly had an astounding ability to win every game he was supposed to win and lose every game he was supposed to lose. The criticism was that he treated big game like a "business trip" and didn't have his team's ready to go. I think Freeman will get the team playing with more emotion in big games, but we'll see if it translates to success. We find out right away. Al Golden was hired to replace Freeman as Defensive Coordinator.
Brandon Joseph - All-American Safety transfer from Northwestern. Replaces Kyle Hamilton at safety who was a first round draft pick of the Ravens.
Old faces:
Michael Mayer - The best tight end in college football and a future first round pick
Isiah Foskey - Edge rusher who had 11 sacks and 6 forced fumbles last year. Another good season turns him into a first round pick as well.
Blake Fisher/Joe Alt/Jarrett Patterson - Basically the whole offensive line returns from last year. Fisher and Alt are sophomore tackles that will anchor the line and Patterson will be a four year starter moving from center to guard. The biggest news is that Harry Hiestand returns as O-line coach after a four year absence. Remember the Quentin Nelson/Zach Martin/Ronnie Stanley/Mike McGlinchey O-lines that Notre Dame had? Those were Harry Hiestand lines. The word is that he hated Brian Kelly which is why he left the first time, and then immediately came back after Kelly left.
Breakout candidate
I think it might be Foskey getting some national buzz and all-American honors if he can put together another good season. If forced to go with someone on offense, I'll pick WR Lorenzo Styles. Last year as a freshman he had 24 receptions for 344 yards and a TD. He started the Fiesta Bowl in the slot where he had 8 catches, 136 yards and a touchdown. I expected him to play mainly in the slot this year. The guy loves slot, he's all your mom's favorite player.
Strengths/Weaknesses
I think the strengths will be up front. Offensive line and defensive line. Tight End as well. The offensive skill positions outside of Mayer feature a lot of talent, but unproven and not a ton of production to this point. The defense (linebackers and secondary) are kind of the opposite. A lot of experience and playing time but have been much maligned in their performance in big games. If Brandon Joseph can step up and maybe CB Cam Hart, they should be able to hold their own defensively.
The Schedule:
9/3 - @ohio St. (#2) 9/10 - Marshall 9/17 - Cal 9/24 @unc 10/8 - @byu (#25) 10/15 - Stanford 10/22 - UNLV 10/29 - @syracuse 11/5 - Clemson (#4) 11/12 - @navy 11/19 - Boston College 11/26 @usc (#14)
Preseason Rank #5 (AP and Coaches). I don't think this is the #5 team in the country. Too many unknowns especially with new head coach and new QB. I would have thought they'd fall somewhere in the #8 -#12 range. Those 4 ranked teams plus B.C. (with Notre Dame transfer Phil Jurkovec at QB) are going to be toss ups. If they can go 3-2 in those games and beat the rest of the teams they should beat, a 10-2 season would be a nice first year for Freeman with many guys coming back for 2023 and some very good recruiting classes coming in.
Fans
We're been over this guys, the co-eds are just a level down for the other major college football programs. So here's some random model in a shamrock bikini.
Thoughts on that first game, paje?
I think it being Freeman's first real game along with your QB starting for the first time and in the 'shoe I should beat you by about 2 TDs. If it is closer than there was little improvement in my defense. For you to win you have to follow the Michigan blueprint and be able to dominate my offensive and defensive lines.
I tend to agree mj. Some ND fans are fired up about being 15.5 point dogs, but I think that is a reasonable spread. It's definitely a tough spot for Buchner, his last start was 2019 in high school, now he's starting a prime time opener in the 'shoe. I think Notre Dame will use the Michigan blue print and try to run the ball early and often along with some RPOs and safer routes to the running backs and tight ends.
I don't see how ND's defense slows down OSU at all. The LB and secondary are suspect at best. If they can get to Stroud by only rushing four maybe they have a chance, but if they rely too much on the blitz and leave defenders on an island, they'll get torched. Maybe an opportunistic turnover or two keeps them in it.
I think there is a real chance we see an early Buchner turnover and OSU receivers running free in the first quarter and the route is on. But there is a chance Notre Dame can control the line of scrimmage, establish the run and shorten the game, I have to assume that will be the game plan, but we'll see.
Hi Paje, are you guys calling for that new coaches firing yet? Are there openly racist remarks by anyone?
What a terrific start!
Most of the ire seems to be directed at O.C. Tommy Rees right now. But there are some who have given up on Freeman already. Here's some quotes from the Irish Illustrated message board I frequent:
It took Freeman 9 months to make this an undisciplined team he’s not turning it around this year.
This press conference really showing Freeman's inexperience across the board. This is really turning into a dumpster fire, unfortunately.
I was one of those that shouted for Fickell to be hired. But jerkoff Swarbrick effed it up. He is a lazy scum. And now what do all the experts think about the Freeman hire? A little patience and we would have had Fickell. He’s an outstanding football coach. And no, we wouldn’t have lost all the recruits and half the roster like all the bed wetting Freeman cheerleaders would have you believe. A players coach. Beware.
I've yet to see any openly racist remarks, so those must be getting made behind closed doors. From past experience (Ty Willingham) a 6-6 season is when the racists remarks really start up. And 6-6 or worse is very much on the table. So far its just been some thinly veiled racism like this:
I think it was a woke hiring. Sorry. Just how I feel. The administration panicked when Kelly went to LSU, fearing the loss of a recruiting class the guy who was a "friend" to all the players was hired. No national search. No nothing.
A couple of people have use the "woke" hiring line.
