Marcus Freeman shares area Notre Dame must show improvement ahead of season opener

The 2023 football season is extremely palpable for Notre Dame as they kick things off versus Navy this Saturday at Aviva Stadium in Ireland.

Notre Dame has been in the process of changing gears from fall camp to game prep, and with kickoff just a few days away, head coach Marcus Freeman detailed which points of emphasis the team is focusing on, starting with the defense.

“Well I think defensively it’s time to really turn your attention to to Navy, we’ve been doing normal defensive things that you’ll see for the majority of the year to defend,” Freeman said. “A majority of the year we have not been doing much Navy-specific defense and so now your attention will truly turn to defending the triple option and what Navy’s offense will present.”

Facing Navy’s triple option style of offense definitely comes with its challenges, as defensive coaches and players have to prep against an offensive scheme that’s rarely seen in today’s college football.

Navy ranked fourth in the nation in rushing yards per game last season with their option attack averaging 241.2 yards on the ground per game, presenting a scheme that will require the Fighting Irish to be extremely gap sound and detailed in their run fits.

“Offensively it’s been an up-and-down first 14 practices and it’s really good to see them go out and execute at a high level. Had some guys that practiced today that have been out a little bit, I know Jeremiyah Love looked really good. Just seeing him out there who’s been out for a week or two,” Freeman said. “And again, now’s just fine tuning the foundation that’s been built and so that’s kind of got to be our focus.”

Love could make an impact on Notre Dame’s offense as a true freshman running back who impressed during fall camp. But the new addition of former Wake Forest quarterback  Sam Hartman will definitely be crucial for the team’s success this season, as he and first-year offensive coordinator Gerad Parker will look to start the season off on the right foot versus the Midshipmen.

“The true physical part of fall camp is over right, and we still gotta have good practices as we get into next week. But the true physical part is over, now we’re going to get into more scout work and really focus on our opponent,” Freeman said.

The offseason work has already been put in for the Fighting Irish, as the attention is now set on starting the season off 1-0, as Notre Dame squares off with Navy this Saturday at 2:30 p.m. ET in a game airing on NBC.