The Notre Dame football team has found some magic, after a disastrous start to the 2025 season. Notre Dame has now won five games in a row, after an 0-2 start.
The Fighting Irish lost those first two games to Miami (FL) and Texas A&M, due to several reasons. The primary reason was the struggles shown by the team's defense. In a loss to Texas A&M for instance, the Notre Dame defense allowed 488 total yards.
That unit is now moving in a much stronger direction. Notre Dame's defense is red-hot, and it showed in a recent win over USC. Notre Dame allowed just 24 points and 68 total rushing yards to the Trojans. The Fighting Irish also forced three turnovers.
Here's a closer look at why things are getting better for the defense in South Bend.
Marcus Freeman challenged his defense's character……it worked
One of the reasons why this defense is flexing right now is due to the head coach. Notre Dame's coach Marcus Freeman is more heavily involved with the defensive play calling. In fact, Freeman admitted he challenged the team's will after that close loss to Texas A&M.
“During tough times, like, there's two options — you fight or flight — and the guys that flight blame other people,” Freeman said in September, per ESPN. “It's the call. It's his fault. It's this coach's fault, or it's that player's fault. That's the flight mode: You deflect and blame other people. But the fight mode is, ‘Gosh, call man [coverage] again. Call man again. I promise you my man's not going to catch the ball.'”
It seems Freeman's message got through. During a recent three-game stretch, the Fighting Irish allowed just 7 points each to North Carolina State and Boise State, and 13 from Arkansas.
It isn't just about stopping opponents from scoring. Notre Dame is also forcing turnovers. During this five-game win streak, the defense has forced 14 total turnovers. That is impressive.
Notre Dame's secondary is improving
The Fighting Irish have found something with their secondary since their last loss. After giving up nearly 600 total passing yards to the Hurricanes and Aggies, the Notre Dame secondary is playing much better.
For instance, in a recent game against North Carolina State, Notre Dame allowed just 233 total yards. The Wolfpack gained just 3.9 yards per play, and Notre Dame came up with three interceptions. The Fighting Irish added four more interceptions in their win over Boise State.
Notre Dame players put that down to the physicality and toughness they are playing with right now. To them, it is also about pride.
“I thought we were just getting our identity checked,” cornerback Leonard Moore said about the team, per The Athletic. “We go out there playing fast and playing violent. I wouldn’t compare it to last year. It’s a new group, it’s a new team. But we went out there and we played violent.”
That physical play turned up once again, in the team's recent win over USC. USC had poured points on opposing teams with ease this season. Against Notre Dame, USC could manage just 24 total points.
While defending the passing game has improved, the problems aren't entirely fixed. Notre Dame allowed 328 passing yards to USC. That is something the squad will continue to work on in the weeks ahead.
The road ahead isn't easy for Notre Dame
While Notre Dame has seen improvement, there is no room to relax. The Fighting Irish must keep winning games if they want to keep their hopes alive for a College Football Playoff berth. There are still plenty of supporters of this squad, including Joel Klatt.
There are five games left on the team's schedule. Notre Dame still plays: Boston College, Navy, Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Stanford. There's a path here for Notre Dame to run the table after that rough start to the campaign.
Time will tell if this defense is able to continue playing with intensity. If they do, this squad has a chance of making the CFP for the second consecutive season. Notre Dame next plays Boston College on November 1.
