Everything Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman said in Week 8 (Georgia Tech) press conference

Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman addressed local reporters Monday afternoon. The Irish are getting set to take on Georgia Tech at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

Here’s everything Freeman had to say.

Opening statement

The outcome of Saturday was great, we were able to keep the Legends Trophy. As I told our players, that trophy represents team glory. There was a lot of good from both sides of the ball, but it’s important to remember how we got to that outcome. We have to continue to recognize what gives this program and this group a chance to achieve that outcome. In terms of preparation, the way we prepare, and then go out and do it.

We have to continue to recognize we can play better. There’s plays all over the film where we could perform at a higher level. We have to get back to work and understand how good this group can be. If you’re willing to put in the work that it takes to achieve that outcome.

Players of the game: on offense Riley Leonard, on defense Howard Cross, special teams was Loghan Thomas. Scout team players of the week were Leo Scheidler, Preston Zinter, and the special teams was Isaiah Dunn.

Injury updates, Mitch Jeter will be questionable for the game. Jordan Faison will be available. With Jordan he was available to play last week he’s just not 100 percent. We have to make sure we do everything on our power to help him get there. Billy Schrauth is questionable.

Last injury update is Benjamin Morrison injured his hip, has to have surgery and will be out for the season. Obviously it’s a blow to our team. You lose a captain and a great football player. You feel terrible for the kid because he give football and preparation everything he has. He’s a tough kid, a tough individual. He’s been through this before. He’ll have surgery and he’ll get back to work to be the best version of Benjamin.

Moving onto Georgia Tech. Really good football team. 5-2. As you watch film they do really good things on all three phases that will require great preparation, a great game plan, and great execution on Saturday for us to achieve the results we want. It’s important we get back to work.

On being tired of being a good team and wanting to be a great team

“For us, that means we’re playing at our full potential. The best we can. There’s more to what this football team can do. Everybody’s definition of great can be different, but it’s a challenge for us as a program to elevate and take that next step to make sure we’re performing at our full potential.”

On what makes him feel like Notre Dame can take that next step

“It’s their commitment to being willing to put in the work. They’ve been committed from the first day we started this process, this journey, but now we are all starting to see what that work and preparation truly entails. So that’s got to be our focus. We have to continue to prepare the way it takes to hopefully get the outcome that we want on Saturday.”

On where he feels like the cornerback group is at with Morrison lost for the season

“Yeah, [Karson Hobbs and Jordan Clark] will have to help us if we need them. Karson was in the same position two weeks ago when Christian was out. Jordan Clark can help us at corner as he showed versus Louisville too. We’re obviously thin with some injuries, but I’m confident in the room.”

On Notre Dame’s use of running backs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price, with Price taking most of the carries early

“We have a plan going into each game in how we’ll rotate the running backs. There’s also a plan with in-game adjustments if a guy is hot, continue to leave him in there, and that’s what that was.”

On being if excellent at fourth-down defense, and if the offense going for it a ton on fourth down helps with that

“The game plans in terms of what we do on fourth downs have been really good in execution. But it’s a confidence. A confidence that I have as a head coach to offensively go for it on fourth down knowing that I believe we’ll make it, but also if we don’t, I have a lot of confidence in our defense to stop the opposing offense.

“Fourth-and-1, Fourth-and-short mentality on defense, those guys have a lot of confidence. Make the call Coach [Al] Golden, let’s go. They’re really done a good job of executing exactly what we’ve asked them to do. You have to be simplistic, you can’t have too much for fourth down defense but we have enough that our guys can play fast and execute doing it.”

On Notre Dame defensive linemen Gabriel Rubio, Joshua Burnham and Bryce Young

“Bryce has been tremendous. We knew he was a special player when he first got here but he is developing faster, probably, than we all thought. Physically ahead of most people his age. He plays the game with an effort that is uncommon at times. When you put those two things together, he’s continued to learn the game of football, that’s why he’s performed at a high level.

“It’s great to have Josh Burnham back. When I went back and watched the film, he has the interception or fumble, whatever they called it, but he played really well. It’s different when he’s in there. The week of practice I was a little bit cautious because he still wasn’t putting all his weight on his ankle, but he didn’t play that way.

“Gabriel Rubio, to have him, a guy that’s been out all fall camp, all season, last week was his first true week of practice and he performed really well for us.”

On Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King

“Yeah, both quarterbacks can run the ball. I know King went out during the game last week but I know their offense didn’t change much. They’re both threats with the ball in their hands. He also does a good job in the passing game. Doesn’t make many mistakes, doesn’t turn the ball over. It’s going to be a great challenge for us.”

On if facing dual-threat quarterbacks two weeks in a row helps Notre Dame’s preparation

“Yeah, but going against a quarterback in practice that you know can run, it helps you develop a game plan. Every offense is different. You know you’re going to have to account for him in the run game and pass game. We’ll have a great plan for him and have to go execute it.”

On how his opinion of freshman cornerback Leonard Moore has changed since he got to Notre Dame

“When you recruit him and develop a relationship with him, you understand he has the talent and the length and the skillset. He’s super intelligent young man. But it still takes time to play fast in a new defense. He was a guy in fall camp that you saw play fast already. We knew he would help us this year and at some point if injuries happened he’d have to start for us. He’ll be ready. We have a lot of confidence in Leonard Moore.”

On preparing for Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Tyler Santucci, whom Notre Dame faced last year with Duke

“There are similarities schematically to what they did at Duke, but there’s also some different stuff they do — third down specifically. I think you have a general idea as you go to game plan but when you look at the details it’s specific to Georgia Tech and you have to make sure you have a good game plan defensively.”

On if his message is different when Notre Dame goes on the road

“I think every week my message can be tailored to the opponent or where we are. I think it’s important that our guys have an idea of the environment we’re going in. I don’t want any surprises. I wanted them to know exactly what it would be like going into College Station, exactly what it would be like going into West Lafayette and what it’s gong to be like going into the Mercedes-Benz Dome to play Georgia Tech. 

“I think that’s so important that they have a visual representation of where they’re going so they don’t spend time looking around wasting time ‘where’s my family, where’s our sideline?’ Often when I’m there, I remind them we’ve been there before. Hopefully it’s a mindset that they’re comfortable with the environment we’re going to.”

On remembering how Notre Dame got the result it got against Stanford, and if he’s concerned that message hasn’t made it through to his team yet

“It’s called complacency. That’s life. That’s every individual. People naturally can be complacent. It’s a reminder that there’s more. That if you realize how good you can be, you’re going to be willing to put the work in. I have to continue to make sure everybody in our program understands that the result from Saturday’s is a reflection of our preparation.

“We can’t just say, ‘Just repeat it.’ We can’t repeat what we did last week. We have to elevate. We have to be better. but if they understand how good you truly can be, then you can show them ‘here’s certain plays you did not achieve the result we wanted; here’s where we were perfect. If they’re willing to put the work in, they’ll achieve that result.”

On the Notre Dame defense increasing its pressures each of the past two games despite injuries to top-two vypers

“I think the execution of some of the stunts, some of the pass rush lanes we’re trying to get. It’s not always bringing extra people. That might be some of the case. But I think it’s just continuing to get better at the technique and execution. You can’t sit here and come up with a scheme to get pressure on the quarterback. At times you’re going to have to out-execute the guy you’re going against. We’re going to try to create as many one-on-one matchups as we can, and believe that our guy is going to out-execute the opponent. You’re seeing our guys executing the fundamentals at a higher level.”

On Howard Cross III and Rylie Mills being disruptive against Stanford

“It’s huge. It’s huge. Those two played dominant. They’ve played well all year, but I think what you saw in this game is a couple of sacks. What they’ve got to understand is that sacks don’t always reflect how you play. There can be a narrative out there that you’re not playing well, because you don’t have the stats to back it up. That’s not always the case. But Saturday what the case was — they played really well and they had the stats to back it up.” 

On what the Notre Dame passing offense did well this week that it hadn’t been doing as effectively before

They did a great job of protecting the quarterback. Did a great job of our quarterback making the right decisions, and confident and quick reads. Threw the ball well. Wideouts being exactly where they wanted to be. And a lot of it still comes down to preparation. I think they had a great idea of what they were going to see, and they saw it. And so, a couple of those plays reflected exactly what they saw in practice.”

On how the young linebackers (Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, Drayk Bowen and Jaiden Ausberry) have progressed

“Getting better and better. They’re practicing well. They’re playing fast. They’re playing physical. Selfless individuals. They’re really doing a good job.”  

On if Notre Dame’s offense is where he wants it to be

Where we want to be after six games? Yeah, but not where I want to be after seven, eight, nine, 10, 11, 12, because we’re improving. And that’s what you see from Week 1 to Week 6. There’s improvement, but there’s another level. There is. There’s more, and I believe we’ll get it, because they’ll put the work in that it takes.”

On Rubio’s comeback and if he played more than expected in his season debut

“No, he played right around what we thought. But it’s a progression in terms of: you get cleared to start running, one week. You get cleared to start doing football-specific movements. So, he was doing football-specific movements, but not in practice. Like this was his first [week] where he was actually in practice, and we knew we were going to use him in a limited role. And he did a great job in that role that we had him in on Saturday.”

On if there’s an open competition between walk-on kickers Zac Yoakam and Marcello Diomede if Jeter can’t go, and what their ranges are

“That’s to be determined. We have an idea of whatever we expect those guys to be able to successfully make the field goal. But we won’t have a competition. We have confidence that whoever we put out there will get the job done that we ask of them, because that’s built in practice. But I think there’s some really good things that Zac does. There’s some good things that Marcello does, and we’ll be specific in our gameplans in terms of what we ask them to do. The confidence is going to be built in practice. We’re going to put them in situations that we expect to put them in on Saturday, and they’ve got to build the confidence in the coaching staff by doing it in practice. But I’m really confident that they will.”

On Kirby Smart shoving a Mississippi State player on the sideline

“Um, I don’t know. I don’t know what you’re talking about. But a general rule of thumb is to use common sense. If you’re not helping Notre Dame, if you’re not helping us win, if you’re not doing something to help us have success, then you probably shouldn’t be doing it. That’s the general rule of thumb. So, putting your hands on another opponent’s player probably isn’t helping us win. And so, at the end of the day, everybody has a role on a team on the sideline. And that role has to be to help us win, no matter what that case may be.”

On how the Notre Dame offensive line has come together despite injuries

“You have five guys in there for the first couple games. Because of injuries, you had to put Rocco [Spindler] and Coogs [Pat Coogan] back in there. And again, they all have done a really good job as individuals, and with time they will continue to be cohesive as a unit. And so, [I’m] really proud of that group, that are playing through some injuries and being thrust into a position because of injuries, and they’re improving constantly now.”

On playing the next two games in NFL stadiums

“I think this week is a little bit different, being indoors. You’ve got to continue to remind them that there’s NFL numbers on the field. I think those are things that are important. Crowd noise probably can be a factor in an indoor stadium, and so those are things that you have to remind them as you go into this game before the game. And that’s what I keep talking about. ‘We’ve been here before.’ You have to show them: There’s NFL numbers here. Here’s where you’re going to line [up] using college numbers. There’ll be ticks out there. It’s indoor. But hey, let’s prepare for some type of crowd noise. And other than that, probably not much different.”