Notre Dame football rolled in a 34-24 victory over USC on Saturday. The Fighting Irish put together a dazzling display of offense, as well as some physical defense. One play in particular impressed Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman.
That play came from Notre Dame's running back Jeremiyah Love. Love rushed for 228 yards in the game, but it was a play where he blocked for his quarterback CJ Carr that left Freeman in awe.
“Great players that make great plays when they have the ball in their hands, but continue to put team before me, that’s hard to do,” Freeman said, per The Athletic. “That might be one of the hardest things we ask our players to do — put team before me.”
Carr scored on that fourth quarter play, which helped Notre Dame come up with the victory. The Fighting Irish are now 5-2 on the campaign.
Notre Dame is looking more like the 2024 team
Notre Dame started out the 2025 campaign with disappointing losses to Miami (FL) and Texas A&M. The team looked like they weren't capable of making the College Football Playoff, especially since the defense struggled so much.
Things have since changed. Notre Dame's coach Freeman is involved more heavily in the play calling on defense. Something has clicked, because Notre Dame has won five in a row.
Freeman said he had a conversation with God while his team was on its way to defeating USC.
“I am sitting there like, ‘God, I get you, man.’ You know?” Freeman said. “Notre Dame, there is something … that moment I’m like, ‘What is going on?’”
Freeman said his team's physicality on defense is the key to success moving forward.
“That’s what we want. That’s our edge,” Freeman said. “We got to play the game in a physical manner that maybe not every team wants to play. Not saying they didn’t. Not every team wants to play that way.”
Notre Dame next plays Boston College on November 1. The Fighting Irish must essentially win out the rest of the year, in order to have any chance of making the CFP.
