The 2022 college football season marks a new era in South Bend. Longtime Notre Dame football head coach Brian Kelly shockingly left the Irish for LSU in the offseason. After his departure, Notre Dame had to find its first new head coach in more than a decade.

The Fighting Irish felt they had the perfect replacement in-house and promoted defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman to be their new head coach. Players feel that Freeman is the man most fit for the job and are eager to get to work with him.

“After seeing how passionate and energetic Coach Freeman is this past season, I am confident to say there is no better man for the job,” offensive lineman Jarrett Patterson told Notre Dame Athletics. “We are extremely excited to go out there and play with Coach Freeman leading us.”

Notre Dame enters the 2022 season as one of the best teams in the country, ranked fifth in the preseason coaches poll. The Irish know they have what it takes to win a championship, especially after two recent College Football Playoff appearances. However, Notre Dame still needs to answer some questions before it can even think about title talk.

Notre Dame Football Burning Questions

3. Will the secondary improve?

Notre Dame's secondary was passable last season, but not a national championship-caliber unit. The Irish allowed 224.2 passing yards per game in 2021, near the middle of the pack in the FBS rankings. That secondary also lost its best player in Kyle Hamilton to the NFL this offseason.

Fortunately for the Irish, they return both of their starting corners in TaRiq Bracy and Clarence Lewis. Notre Dame also landed former All-American safety Brandon Joseph from Northwestern, who should fill in admirably for Hamilton.

The big concern with the secondary is a lack of experience. Many players behind Bracy, Lewis and Joseph have little experience at the college level, and the Irish are counting on them to step up. This secondary will have a trial by fire as Notre Dame faces Ohio State, the nation's best total offense in 2021, in Week 1.

2. How will Tyler Buchner perform as the starting QB?

Notre Dame has yet to name its starting signal-caller for this upcoming college football season, but Buchner appears to have the inside track. The sophomore from San Diego primarily saw the field as a runner last season, with 46 attempts for 336 yards and three scores. He added 298 yards and three touchdowns through the air as well.

Assuming Buchner earns the starting job as expected, he will have lofty expectations on his shoulders. He has proven to be effective as a situational quarterback, but being the starter is a different game entirely.

Jack Coan, last year's starter, was very solid for the Irish with 3,150 yards and 25 touchdowns on the year. Buchner will need to produce at least close to Coan's level to keep his job locked down. Notre Dame's playoff hopes may depend on how well Buchner adjusts to being the full-time quarterback.

1. How will Marcus Freeman adjust to being a head coach?

Yes, Freeman is stepping into the head coaching gig with great hype and support around him. However, he's still in his first year on the job and jumping into that role requires some adjustment. Even Nick Saban had a rough first season with Alabama in 2007 to finish 7-6, and he had nearly two decades of head coaching experience under his belt.

Freeman is also one of the youngest coaches in the game at just 36 years old. He has coached for just 12 years at five different schools and was only a defensive coordinator for six of those seasons. 2021 was his first season with Notre Dame, and just his second as a Power Five coordinator.

Freeman has all the qualities of a fantastic football coach, but he may need some time to hone his craft at Notre Dame.