Marcus Freeman raves about DJ Brown, what he's overcome

Notre Dame senior safety DJ Brown is one of the lesser-heralded players on the Irish roster, a steady hand on the backend of the defense that has some star power elsewhere. But head coach Marcus Freeman raved about Brown when asked about his progression this week.

Aside from his growth as a player, Freeman remarked on the person that Brown is. Brown’s father died tragically on a family vacation and Freeman reflected on how that shapes a person — and how it’s important to be real about loving your players as people.

“You know, to answer your question, he’s one of a few players that have had personal loss on our team. And as a head coach, and as your coach — it’s not just your head coach, it’s not just how to make these guys great football players, right? If you love these guys like you say you do, then there’s going to be a trust and care about their personal lives, too,” Freeman said. “And that’s important, to get the most out of these football players, you better know every single thing going on in that young man’s life. And as far as DJ, there are some other guys that are — it’s real, man. And if you don’t have that type of relationship, you’re going to struggle getting the most out of your players.”

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On the football side of things, Brown has been steady for Notre Dame. He isn’t the flashy playmaker like Northwestern transfer Brandon Joseph, but when Joseph went down with an injury, Brown was ready to step in and confidently fill an expanded role.

Brown has played in every game for Notre Dame this season and while his stats don’t pop off the page, Freeman had high, high praise for his play.

“He’s played extremely well,” Freeman said. “He played more this past game than probably we thought, going in. And he’s played a lot this year. But, because of BJo going down — Brandon Joseph going down with an ankle sprain — but he’s been playing really well I think. I’ve been around him, this is the second year, and he’s playing his highest level of football right now. DJ’s got to improve, just like every other member, but he’s getting better. He’s getting better. He’s playing with a lot of confidence right now and really, really doing a good job.”