SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Ten thoughts on Notre Dame’s 56-23 blowout of Stanford, which allowed Marcus Freeman to end his second season on a high note, even if the the Irish were always hunting bigger game. Will Freeman view this season for what it was or what it wasn’t?

1. Freeman believes in cause and effect. He believes in process over results.

Advertisement

So how does Notre Dame’s head coach view offensive coordinator Gerad Parker after a season in which the Irish averaged 39.1 points per game and 6.95 yards per play? Both figures ranked ninth nationally. Both figures ranked second in Notre Dame history. Yet what was the cause for Notre Dame averaging just 19.5 points per game against Ohio State, Duke, Louisville and Clemson? What was the process that led to the Irish hitting the 45-point mark six times against overmatched opponents but looking bereft of ideas in big games?

And if Notre Dame’s ultimate goal is winning in the College Football Playoff, not scoring eight touchdowns against Stanford, do the Irish have the right approach?

Freeman could easily point to the full-season statistics as the reason to stay the course. More experienced coaches, including Brian Kelly, have done as much with coordinator decisions in the past. How will Freeman move forward? Does he see an opportunity to double down? Or is this a moment to change direction?

We’re about to learn a lot about Freeman either way.

GO DEEPER

Sampson: Notre Dame's largely successful season can't represent a peak

2. Full disclosure: There was a time earlier this season when I thought Notre Dame should limit Audric Estime’s touches, not expand them. I mean, watch Jeremiyah Love hit the hole. You’d like to see more of that, too, right? Welp, a couple months, more than a dozen touchdowns and what could have been the greatest night by a running back in the history of Notre Dame later … I was laughably wrong. I’m not sure I ever wrote this terrible opinion into existence, but it was Iowa State-over-Notre Dame-in-the-Camping World Bowl-bad, so I wanted to cleanse my palate before it was too late.

My apologies, Audric Estime.

3. Notre Dame’s leading wide receiver averaged 2.25 catches and 32.7 yards per game. The wideout expected to be Notre Dame’s most reliable caught two passes in October and two in November. The receiver deemed most likely to break out this fall drifted in and out of the lineup and barely averaged one catch per game. And the wide receiver you’d most want to touch the ball heading into bowl season? He’s a former walk-on who enrolled at Notre Dame to play lacrosse.

Advertisement

Yes, the reasons behind Notre Dame’s offense bogging down in big spots are complicated. But what the Irish had at wide receiver — tight end Mitchell Evans still led the team in receptions despite missing four games — does make the diagnosis feel simple.

4. JD Bertrand will go down as a two-time captain and an all-time leader for Notre Dame football. As somebody who has crossed paths with Bertrand away from Notre Dame’s football facility, he’s exactly what you’d expect. Rock solid. And I’d still love to know what the film session looked like when Al Golden turned on the tape of Jack Kiser’s interception that Bertrand celebrated as a pick six a bit too early. Not many players or coaches can laugh at that kind of play in film review, but hopefully Bertrand and Golden can.

5. Did it feel like Sam Harman had the third most efficient season by a quarterback in Notre Dame history? Because that’s what the statistics say.

6. Notre Dame opponents finished the regular season 2 of 43 on third or fourth down when they needed 10 yards or more to move the chains. The second conversion came midway through the fourth quarter of the Stanford game, with Notre Dame up 40 points. You probably remember the first. Golden’s defense was almost unbeatable when it forced opponents to throw. Almost.

7. During warmups at Stanford, a scout from the San Francisco 49ers approached Javontae Jean-Baptiste to introduce himself. Notre Dame’s star defensive end shook the scout’s hand and got back to work. It’s hard to imagine Jean-Baptiste would be on anyone’s NFL radar if he’d played his final college season at Ohio State. It’s also hard to imagine that Jean-Baptiste expected to get this good, this quickly at Notre Dame. He went from sharing time with Nana Osafo-Mensah during spring practice and fall camp to being perhaps the best defensive lineman on Notre Dame’s roster.

Advertisement

Jean-Baptiste represents an incredible development story for defensive line coach Al Washington, which Notre Dame will need to sell hard in December. The Irish need to find the next Jean-Baptiste in the transfer portal. It’s worth the investment of time and NIL money if the Irish can find another pass rusher like No. 1.

Program sources indicated Freeman has already told players that an incoming defensive end transfer is a priority.

8. Does Notre Dame have a road game problem? And what’s the root cause?

The Irish played five true road games this season. The weather delay at NC State. The near-death experience at Duke. The meltdown at Louisville. The offensive no-show at Clemson. And the Stanford blowout, which included three turnovers in the first half (and almost a fourth) before the Irish pulled away. Are there connecting factors here beyond the venue? It’s a question Freeman will have to answer this offseason, at least before the Irish open 2024 in College Station against Mike Elko next September.

9. So Notre Dame finishes 9-3, one game better than last season, with a roster that felt like it could have been so much more. Freeman talks about Notre Dame reaching its full potential. His players do, too. Based on how Freeman saw the Irish on Saturday night, it feels like he knows Notre Dame didn’t get there.

10. Notre Dame went into last weekend looking like a good bet for the ReliaQuest Bowl on Jan. 1. Getting there requires a Big Ten team to head to the Orange Bowl, which requires the highest-rated Big Ten team that misses the College Football Playoff finish higher than the highest-rated SEC team that misses the CFP. Basically, if Alabama loses to Georgia next weekend, Ohio State should get the Orange Bowl invite. That means Notre Dame to the old Outback Bowl in Tampa against an SEC team (likely Tennessee or LSU).

Maybe this season fell short of expectations. If Notre Dame wasn’t good enough to make the College Football Playoff, it should have been good enough for a New Year’s Six bid. The loss at Clemson snuffed out that idea. But ending the season with a win over an SEC program … maybe one coached by Brian Kelly?

Advertisement

There have been worse ways to enter an offseason.

(Photo: Thearon W. Henderson / Getty Images)