Marcus Freeman Explains How Notre Dame Is Navigating College Football's New Era
The college football landscape is changing almost daily, making adaptability one of the most important traits for any program looking to win a National Title.
Some schools have been slow to embrace those changes. Notre Dame, for example, took a few years to fully embrace the NIL era.
Since then, the Fighting Irish have done a great job of keeping pace with the sport's ever-evolving landscape.
This offseason brought another significant change as college athletics implemented a new eligibility model that gives players five seasons of competition over five years. The rule allows players who previously redshirted to regain that season of eligibility, a change that could have a meaningful impact on Notre Dame's roster management moving forward.
“I think for us, it's number one, who's the fourth-year seniors who will have an opportunity to come back for a fifth year if they want,” stated Freeman. “The players that have played four years. That's number one.”
That additional year won't carry the same value for every player.
A player like Drayk Bowen is entering his fourth season with the potential to become a two-time captain and already has a résumé for the NFL. Safety Luke Talich, on the other hand, may benefit more from an extra season. Talich has received NFL evaluations as a linebacker, so returning for another year while making a full-time transition to the second level could significantly improve his draft stock.
Perhaps the biggest impact of the new rule, though, is the flexibility it provides coaches.
The old four-game redshirt rule often forced coaching staffs to carefully manage a young player's appearances, sometimes creating uncomfortable conversations with players and their families.
That concern is now gone, allowing coaches to play freshmen whenever they believe it benefits the team.
“It's good for both parties, the student-athlete, but also the coaches,” explained Freeman. “Coaches don't have to make a decision on what four games we are playing them. Do we wanna save this fourth game in case we need them? We gotta have a tough conversation. We need you to play game five and this kid is talking to his agent and his parents, ‘They don't want me to play game five.’ That's tough on a young person. It's tough on coaches.”
Another area where Notre Dame has quietly excelled in college football's new era is player retention.
Like every major program, the Irish have lost players to the transfer portal, but they have largely avoided losing the players they consider foundational pieces.
This offseason's most notable departure was graduate transfer Joshua Burnham, who transferred to Indiana. Burnham would have had a role at Notre Dame, but his exit wasn't devastating thanks to the depth the Irish have built at defensive end.
Freeman believes two factors have played a major role in keeping players in South Bend: Competitive NIL opportunities and the value of earning a Notre Dame degree.
“You wanna believe that financially they're close to as well compensated here as anywhere else,” Freeman stated. “Probably the second thing is understanding that I don't wanna leave Notre Dame without a degree. I want to get my degree from Notre Dame and we have to remind them how important that is.”
The final piece of the retention puzzle may be the culture Freeman has built.
Notre Dame has established a team-first environment where players understand that individual success often follows team success. Just as importantly, Freeman believes players remain invested because they know they are valued regardless of their role.
“They feel that they're valued,” Freeman said. “When you feel as though you're valued and you're appreciated, your role doesn't determine your value. I think it makes you want to be a part of a program.
“It's not just, 'What have you done for me? What are you gonna do for me?’ It's that you're valued and people appreciate you. I think that's what people want when they're a part of a team. I think our staff has been able to do that.”
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