Notre Dame Bye Allows For More Work For Young Irish
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman didn’t take it easy on his team during the bye week as the Fighting Irish held three practices with physicality being the name of the game.
Freeman wanted to see improvement and also have a chance to get a look at the growth of some of his young players.
"It was a chance for us at the end of practice to get some of those young guys to practice some live reps and really develop the core nucleus of our team,” Freeman said of the bye. “We had some really physically challenging practices, but I believe today on Monday, they're recovered and we're going to have a great Monday practice."
Freshman quarterback Steve Angeli has seen is workload increase over the last three weeks as he went from scout team quarterback to being one play away from the show.
Angeli’s learning curve has been expedited and every rep on the practice field is magnified.
"Every practice we're out there is beneficial for Steve because he is no longer taking scout team reps,” explained Freeman. “He's taking real reps and understanding that at any moment, he could be thrust into the game. He's not, as I told him the other day, you're not a freshman anymore. You're one play away from being the starting quarterback at Notre Dame. That's the reality of the situation.
“If it happens, he'll be ready to go. So every day we prepare, we practice, it's a day for Steve Angeli to get better."
Notre Dame’s receivers have been a hot topic for the last ten months for a variety of reasons. It’s not a deep group and the bye week was a chance for the Irish to get Deion Colzie (knee) and Joe Wilkins Jr. (foot) healthy, but also help freshman Tobias Merriweather grow in his knowledge of the offense.
Freeman challenged the trio of receivers to meet more with Chansi Stuckey and Tommy Rees, even if it meant having some tough conversations.
"We have to continue to be in Coach (Chansi) Stuckey and Coach (Tommy) Rees' offices, 'What do I have to do to improve?' That's not just for those guys, but for everybody. If what you're getting on the practice field or in the game isn't what you want, don't just accept it. Go seek feedback.
"Sometimes that's not what you want to hear. It's not easy to hear things that you have to improve on, but if you really want to know how to get better and to get some of the results that you want, you got to go seek that feedback. They've been practicing well.”
The first-year head coach also made it clear that he expected Notre Dame’s other receivers to do the same as the group needs to take it to the next level over the next eight games.
Lorenzo Styles leads the Irish receivers with 16 receptions for 221 yards and one score, but after that, graduate student Braden Lenzy is next with seven catches for 69 yards.
"Lorenzo Styles has got to get better and he's been practicing well,” Freeman stated. “Jayden Thomas and those guys that are playing right now. Braden Lenzy. Those wideouts all have to get better. But I see Tobias improving. I see Colzie improving and Joe Wilkins. They're all improving. What package they'll have or what their impact will be on the game is still to be determined, but all you can ask for as the head coach is to see constant improvement out of those guys."
Notre Dame’s offensive performance last six quarters has given some much-needed confidence to the Irish offense and it starts with the offensive line.
Yes, North Carolina’s defense is bad, but Freeman believes it was more of Notre Dame’s doing more than the Tar Heels being bad.
Notre Dame totaled 576 total yards against North Carolina, which included 287 rushing yards and that gives Freeman confidence the Irish offense is headed in the right direction.
“I think that's what our identity has to be,” Freeman explained. “We have to be able to run the ball. It's not always going to be explosive and 10-15 yard gains, but if you're able to move the ball with consistency and stay on track and stay in rhythm, it opens up everything in your offense and the pass game. It's great to see.
“I think it's a testament to our offensive line. It starts with them. I don't care what running back you have back there, if your offensive line isn't executing, blocking, to the way it has to, nobody's gonna be able to run the ball. Our offensive line continues to get better and better and better, which is really helping out our run game."
The Fighting Irish will head to Las Vegas this weekend to face No. 16 BYU and Freeman was set to track down a few answers to questions he had entering the game on Monday.
“I have to find out if they're going to have NFL numbering and stuff like that on the field because that can be different for the wideouts,” stated Freeman. “The hash marks will be the same, I know that, but the numbering sometimes in NFL stadiums can be different.”
And when it comes to the distractions of Las Vegas, Freeman isn’t worried his team will lose focus or be tempted to experience the flashing lights of Sin City.
"We're not going to get out there in time to experience any of the distractions that I think Las Vegas can present,” said Freeman. “We're going to get there and be very strategic in what we do. I want them to go see Allegiant Stadium and go straight to the hotel. Have dinner, we'll have time together and a normal meeting we have on Friday night.
"Then they're going to go to bed. We have to remember our bodies are used to eastern standard time, so we're going to try to get them to bed at a decent hour and wake them up at a decent hour to get us ready for the game on Saturday."
Under Armour Notre Dame Fighting Irish 2022 Shamrock Series Polo
