Quick-hitters: Marcus Freeman on Clemson impressions, Brian Mason, Audric Estime

It’s game week of a “heavyweight fight,” in Marcus Freeman’s terms. Notre Dame (5-3) hosts No. 5 Clemson (8-0, 6-0 ACC) Saturday. Freeman met with reporters Monday afternoon for the first of his two game week media availabilities. Here are some topics he discussed.

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On the reassurance a win over Clemson would bring

“Reassurance, confidence, all the same word. I have a belief in what we’re doing. What I’ve learned in these eight games is it’s never as you plan. You have those bumps in the road that you have to figure out and learn as a leader – this is what you thought you should do, now how do you adjust? Not just trust the process. How do you fix it to get the results you wanted?

“Would a win vs. Clemson help me build confidence in the things we do? Absolutely. That’s what victories do.”

On what he sees when watching Clemson

“One thing that spoke to me is they never seemed out of it vs. Syracuse. They were down 21-10, you can look at their sideline – when the quarterback [DJ Uiagalelei] got taken out of the game, to watch that quarterback being the first one cheering the group on, to be the first one to clap for [replacement Cade Klubnik], that tells you they have a team. It’s not a bunch of selfish individuals, it’s a team.”

“That’s what I look for when I watch opponents. We’re playing a team. No matter what the score is, they’re never out. They’re about what’s best for the team. That’s a tough opponent. And they’re talented. Let’s make sure we say that.”

On the possibility of lots of Clemson fans being at Notre Dame Stadium

“I don’t know if it will be any different. We played Cincinnati here and there was some red. It sticks out when it’s a bright color, red or orange.

“It’s a home-field advantage to play a team like Clemson at Notre Dame Stadium. It’s a huge advantage for us. You go from last week where you’re in that loud dome, everything has to be on silent count, it was tough. We had two pre-snap penalties because of it. We’re grateful to be back home, especially to play a team like Clemson.”

On defensive tackle Howard Cross III playing through a high-ankle sprain

“He’s a tough guy. He had an ankle injury that kept him out [vs. BYU], then battled back, battled back, then tweaked it a couple times in practice. Those ankle injuries and high-ankle sprains can be more nagging than a break. It’s hard sometimes because it’s hard to truly recover in the course of a season. But he’s a tough dude who works his tail off.

“I challenged the D-Line room that we need to get some more batted balls. We might be height deficient in that room, but you have a guy like Howard Cross – he claims he had two ball break ups [vs. Syracuse]. One turned into an interception. The other is still debatable. It’s a point of emphasis to get your hands up. Howard Cross is a warrior. He has been doing great things for us and will continue to do great things for us.”

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On what he saw in hiring special teams coordinator Brian Mason

“I’ve worked with Brian Mason since 2011 at Kent State when we hired him as a defensive GA. Mase has those qualities in terms of work ethic, intelligence, ability to connect with players you see 10 or 11 years later.

“He’s one of the best. He does a great job. Why? Because of his work ethic. Why? Because of his intelligence. Why? Because of his ability to teach and relate to players. You can have all these thoughts, but if your players can’t go and execute it and have a belief in what you’re presenting, you’re not a great coach. You might be really smart, but coaches are as good as how their players can perform. That’s what continues to make my belief in Brian Mason so strong.

“He’s continuing to get there. You’re not going to trick anybody. You’ve blocked three punts in the past two games and five this year. It’s not just punt block. I challenged the special teams unit and kickoff return. We have been below average in kickoff return. Last week, we got one opportunity, and it came out for 30-plus yards. If we get one more block, it could’ve been more. That’s what you love to see, guys step up to a challenge but also enhance what they’re good at.”

On running back Audric Estime’s week of practice after fumbling three times in four games before Syracuse

“It’s really important as a coach to make sure your players know you believe in them. That’s the one thing that never wavered was the belief in Audric being productive and the things he could do as a running back.

“Belief and work in practice are two different things. We had to be very intentional in the things we did with ball security with him in practice. That has nothing to do with the belief I have in Audric Estime. We’re insane if we don’t think we change certain things we do in practice to get results we want. This week in practice, we did some different things with ball security with Audric and all the running backs. [Running backs coach Deland] McCullough brought some different ideas.

“It’s going to be continuous, that work in practice, that intentional work, to make sure we don’t let fumbling the football become a staple of our program. We can’t. Ball security is too important. But you can’t just say it without doing the work.”

On if he knew before the game Syracuse quarterback Garrett Shrader was playing hurt

“I didn’t know personally he was banged up until late in the week. We heard the quarterback may not play. I knew the Clemson game was a physical game. He took some hits. But he’s a competitor and he will battle. I figured we’d see him.

“No matter if he’s banged up or not, if a team is going to run their quarterback, you have to be physical with that guy. That’s an important position. If you’re going to run the quarterback, as the defensive team, you have to make sure you’re physical when you can be within the rules. We knew that would be a challenge.

“I don’t know if there was anything in particular that made them make the decision to pull him in the second half. We have to at least make sure that if you’re running the ball, we’ll try to tackle you physically.”

On Notre Dame’s screen game

“It’s an important part of our offense. There have been some opportunities we haven’t executed. A lot of it happens on the ball. I think about the ball to Lorenzo Styles last week [vs. Syracuse]. Drew [Pyne] knows he has to give him a better ball. I’ll always tell any wideout, any tight end, any running back that gets his hands on the ball that your job is to make the quarterback look good.

“But Drew would be the first to tell you, ‘I have to give him a better ball.’ We have to make sure we catch those tough balls.”