00:00What about the coaching chess match here between Freeman and Franklin?
00:19I think Franklin's got a lot of pressure on him.
00:22I think he does, because, I mean, listen, for Notre Dame, they get a lot of credit coming
00:26off that Sugar Bowl.
00:27Listen to Pundit and everyone around the sport, Notre Dame breaking that almost three-decade
00:31drought of success in major bowl games, 0-8 in the BCS in New Year's, six games until
00:36that one.
00:37That win, even though it was against a backup quarterback, gave them a lot of capital in
00:42a lot of people's minds.
00:43And for James Franklin, I think he's still searching for that.
00:45I don't think the wins against SMU and Boise State resonated in the same way that they
00:49would like, and certainly in the way that this Notre Dame game would as a win.
00:52And so, listen, I know I'm a Notre Dame fan, and so everything gets filtered through the
00:57lens, but I think Marcus Freeman has acquitted himself incredibly well in terms of the in-game
01:02coaching prowess this season.
01:04More fourth-down attempts this year than in his first two seasons combined.
01:07You've got some high-leverage moves in special teams and in some of the hidden yardage situations
01:13that have popped up where Marcus Freeman hasn't been afraid to push the gas pedal down in
01:17critical situations.
01:18And so he understands, hey, with this offense, we've got to steal possessions.
01:21The defense is going to do some of that, but I've got to manufacture the rest of the head
01:25coach, and he's been up to that challenge.
Comments