Live updates: Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman spring press conference No. 2
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman is speaking to the media for the second time this spring Saturday. He last addressed reporters on March 7 after the Fighting Irish practiced one time before splitting for spring break.
Follow along below for live updates of what Freeman is saying. You can watch the press conference by clicking play on the YouTube player below. Further down the page, written updates will appear in real time if you keep clicking refresh.
WATCH: Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman press conference
What Freeman is saying
**Keep refreshing this page for real-time written updates of what Freeman is saying.**
• Freeman says he’s headed to the Notre Dame women’s basketball game after he gets done with this press conference. First round of the NCAA Tournament for the Irish.
• This was the first day the Notre Dame football team wore full pads, four practices into spring ball.
• Quarterback Riley Leonard had another surgery on his ankle, his second in the last three months, and will be out of practice for a couple weeks. Freeman is not ruling him out for a return to practice at some point. The end of spring ball is April 20’s Blue-Gold Game.
• Steve Angeli has been getting reps with the ones in the wake of Leonard’s absence. “Steve is ahead of the other guys just through experience and the evidence he’s shown us.”
• Wide receiver Deion Colzie is also going to be out for a bit because of injury.
• Freeman says he has confidence in the Irish secondary being coached by Mike Mickens, Marty Biagi and Al Golden.
• Notre Dame is mostly running 11 personnel in spring practices because of injuries to tight ends but also because the Irish have some new wide receivers they’re trying to break in. Those wide receivers have been extremely impressive in the spring so far, too.
• Freeman jokes he’s fine with throwing the ball on third and 1, which falls in line with what Mike Denbrock likes to do, “as long as it’s a first down.”
• Freeman says Notre Dame defensive tackles Rylie Mills and Howard Cross III “are at a 500 level.” We’re not talking 100 and 200 intro classes, as the analogy goes.
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• Freeman says defensive end Bryce Young, son of former Irish d-lineman and NFL Hall of Fame inductee Bryant Young, is the Notre Dame early enrollee freshman who’s been the most impressive so far in spring ball.
• Freeman says he keeps seeing Duke defensive end transfer RJ Oben progressing with each practice. He’s impressed with the the retention and the way he fixes mistakes. He’s learnign what Al Washington wants and he’s implementing it.
• Freeman says early enrollee freshman running back Kedren Young has been hampered by an injury suffered in the second practice of the spring. Aneyas Williams has been healthy and looking good, though. Freeman is excited for his future.
• Freeman says he’s been impressed by young safeties Adon Shuler, Luke Talich and Ben Minich. “All three of those guys are going to help us in some way.”
• Freeman says the passing of the baton from Jack Swabrick to Pete Bevacqua as Notre Dame athletics director, which is made official Monday, has been going on for months. He’s been working with both of them for a while.
• Freeman says there was an undisciplined penalty he was upset with by the ones today in the six plays they were on the field for. There was also one first down. He said overall, he liked what he saw.
