Marcus Freeman reveals how far away Notre Dame is from reaching standard

The hire of Marcus Freeman was lauded for Notre Dame, fans and analysts alike rejoicing in the former Fighting Irish defensive coordinator being elevated to the position of head coach.

However, the greatest moments of Freeman’s tenure have been off the field — his on the field record is a shocking 0-3 at the moment. That’s far from what Freeman and Notre Dame envisioned when they started their partnership, and far from what they want their future to be like.

Speaking with the media after dropping their home opener to Marshall on Saturday, Freeman revealed how far he believes the Irish are from reaching their standard.

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“We’re not close enough,” started Freeman. “If you can’t stop the run or get after the quarterback when it’s crunch time, if you can’t run the ball or protect the quarterback when it’s crunch time, we’re not where we need to be.

“If we want to be the program we all aspire to be, we’re going to have to be an offensive line and a defensive line driven program. That’s not going to change. We’re not where we need to be. We know that.”

While many didn’t give Notre Dame a chance against Ohio State, the college football world expected a victory over Marshall. Moving forward, Marcus Freeman will be looking to right the ship, and get the Irish back on track to backing up the hype he received when he was originally promoted.

Reporter asks Marcus Freeman about his inexperience after loss to Marshall

Continuing, Marcus Freeman faced the question about his inexperience head-on after the Fighting Irish fell to the Thundering Herd at Notre Dame Stadium.

In the postgame press conference, a reporter asked Freeman about his lack of experience as a head coach and whether that’s a factor in Notre Dame’s rough start to his tenure. He made it clear he’s going to take a hard look at everything in the program — even himself.

“I don’t know if it’s my experience at head coach. I don’t know if that’s a reason why or a lack of execution,” Freeman said. “But it starts with me. It starts with me as the head coach and looking at myself and saying, ‘What do I have to do to help this football team?’ And really look at everything we’re doing, because the performance isn’t where we need it to be.”

With the loss, Freeman became the first Notre Dame head coach to start his tenure 0-3, counting last season’s Fiesta Bowl loss to Oklahoma State. However, his predecessor also didn’t have a great start. Brian Kelly started 1-2 in his first three games before becoming the Fighting Irish’s all-time wins leader before departing over the offseason.

One of the big concerns after the game is the health of quarterback Tyler Buchner, who left the game late in the fourth quarter with an injury. That meant Drew Pyne had to come into the game to finish things out. Freeman said he didn’t know how serious the injury was during his press conference.

Notre Dame will have a chance to right the ship next week when the Fighting Irish take on Cal in South Bend.