Marcus Freeman and most of the Notre Dame fans have started packing last season into a trunk that is going in the attic.
It will be the oh-yeah-I-remember-this trunk when you’re about to sell the house.
But Freeman needs to do what Kelly couldn’t, win a game like the one that will be played Saturday night against Ohio State.
Notre Dame has a lot in its favor.
The Fighting Irish finally have a quarterback who’s capable of winning this type of game. They never had that under Brian Kelly.
The other thing they have is an Ohio State team that doesn’t put fear into its opponents like they have in the past.
Yes, the wide receiver group is about as good as it comes along with a quarterback that’s solid but still hasn’t answered any questions.
Notre Dame has everything in its favor when they take the field for a Saturday night NBC game at the House that Rockne Built.
I’ll stop short of saying that Notre Dame has no excuses if they lose. The pass rush is still inconsistent which could bite the Irish in the butt if Kyle McCord is accurate.
It’s important for Freeman to have Notre Dame fans stop looking down south to see what Kelly is doing.
With the history this program has, there should be no obsession over an ex but it exists.
Kelly left Notre Dame for LSU because he believed he would have a better chance at winning a National Championship. Without saying it, he told the Notre Dame community that what he accomplished in South Bend is the best it’s going to get.
That stings even if reasonable minds know that the SEC is one of the best, if not the best, pathways to be in title contention every season.
Notre Dame’s program felt alive under Kelly even if the coach frequently came off as a stiff.
Freeman is the exact opposite.
His personality is infectious. He’s an easy coach to get behind as a fan and as a recruit but let’s not forget, Notre Dame is his first head coaching job.
This might be the most difficult job in the country considering the current client.
The college playoff system…. NIL… the whisper of “forcing” Notre Dame to join a conference.
All that with the everyday pressures on being the Notre Dame head coach isn’t for the weak.
But, if Freeman wants to prove he’s the guy who can take the program to a place Kelly couldn’t, beating Ohio State on Saturday night would be a good start.
