Marcus Freeman on Kris Mitchell's performance: 'That's why we got him from the portal'

In December, Notre Dame landed former FIU wide receiver Kris Mitchell in the NCAA Transfer Portal. Only a few months later, Notre Dame’s addition is paying dividends. After Notre Dame’s Blue-Gold Game, head coach Marcus Freeman raved about Mitchell.

“It’s big. It’s why we got him from the portal,” Freeman said. “We knew he could help this team, and we’ve seen it on film. He’s had a really good spring. There’s been days we’ve kept him out for precautionary reasons.

“But it’s good when we go live and let him go and throw the ball deep to him, he makes some big plays. He’s going to help us. That’s why he’s here — to really boost this wide receiver room. And it was good to see him score a touchdown today.”

Mitchell was a standout in Notre Dame’s annual exhibition. His biggest moment came with less than five minutes left in the game when he hauled in a 62-yard touchdown reception to secure a 28-21 win for his team.

After the scrimmage, Mitchell reflected on the highlight play.

“I got the signal, and it was like a double move, so I was like, ‘Yeah, this is coming to me,” Mitchell explained. “Me and Steve have talked before and were like, ‘We’re going to make a play today.’ I saw that was the opportunity that the DB (defensive back) had his eyes on me, and I knew if I made a good enough break that he was going to jump on it and the ball was going to be right there after my break.”

Mitchell is no stranger to massive plays. In the 2023 campaign at FIU, Mitchell tallied 64 catches for 1,118 yards, seven touchdowns and 17.5 yards per catch. In four seasons with the program, Mitchell boasts 100 catches for 1,663 yards, 12 touchdowns and 16.6 yards per catch.

Now, Kris Mitchell will look to find similar success at Notre Dame. Freeman is certainly happy with the direction the program is heading.

“I think I’m really pleased with what we’ve added to this roster in terms of our wideout room,” Freeman said. “I’m confident in the guys that we have returning in this wideout room, but I’m also confident the guys that we brought in to really elevate the room as a whole. 

“I believe this probably is, I want to say, one of the most talented rosters we’ve had since I’ve been here, right? Now, it’s our job to build that talent and mold that talent and make sure we teach that talent to get to where we want to go.”