Notre Dame head football coach Marcus Freeman met for his weekly in-season Monday press conference, and unfortunately brought some bad news with him.
Typically, the injury report is one of the first things that he touches on, and you could hear the disappointment in his voice after he said that one of the star transfer would not play this fall. It’s unfortuante, but it’s part of football.
Freeman also wrapped up what we saw against Purdue, touched on the run game and CJ Carr’s ability to check in-and-out of plays along with previewing North Carolina this weekend. Find out below my takeaways from what Freeman said on Monday afternoon.
Quincy Porter out for remainder of season
Broadcast
This wasn’t how the Irish envisioned a former 5-star’s first year on campus, but a knee injury has kept Porter off
the field for the majority of time in South Bend and it will continue. Freeman said he had an MRI over the weekend and it was not good. He’ll take the rest of the year to recover and hopefully be ready to go in the spring.
Notre Dame run game has shown improvement
+6 for Aneyas 🙌#GoIrish☘️ | @AneyasW
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 26, 2026
📺: Peacock pic.twitter.com/ZEWsyMmFHQ
The meshing of the line has corresponded with a better run game, and the meeting the offense had has gone a long way. “It’s improving,” as Freeman said, as he’s schematically trying to get the players in the best position. This makes plenty of sense, as the game plan typically works the best when you are playing to the players strengths. It looks like the Irish will go with the hot hand at the position, “as long as they’re producing, we’ll keep those guys on the field.”
The Irish defense isn’t a magical formula
Notre Dame officially has the #1 ranked defense in the country
— Biased Notre Dame Fan (@CFBGuy999) September 27, 2026
Feels good to be the best ☘️ pic.twitter.com/92DxTct2Mh
The coaching staff led by Chris Ash has done a great job, but Freeman credited the work that the unit has put in. It’s not a fluke that the Notre Dame defense has been great since Ash got his feet wet last year. Freeman put a lot on the game planning and being able to coach up the players.
Notre Dame has lots of confidence in Joey O’Brien
An impressive first-career start for the freshman 🔥#GoIrish☘️ | @Joey_obrien6 pic.twitter.com/sWauS5qQVm
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 27, 2026
Getting his first start, the former 5-star freshman played very well. Freeman told him in pregame “this is just like high school … go out and play.” It very much seemed like he was very happy with O’Brien’s play against Purdue, setting himself up for more on his plate the coming weeks. What stands out the most is that Freeman has seen the freshman put in the work to understand the defense and where he needs to be. Luke Talich looks to return this weekend, but expect O’Brien to still see the field.
CJ Carr’s ability to adjust protections is huge for Notre Dame
Swipe through CJ’s 4️⃣ touchdowns at Purdue 🙌#GoIrish☘️ | @13Cjcarr pic.twitter.com/F668KGr27m
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 28, 2026
Carr has done a great job with his protection checks, and Freeman gave his quarterback a ton of credit with how well the line has played, not giving up sacks. Carr according to Freeman “has done an excellent job” of getting his teammates in the right position and with making changes to plays to maximize the potential. Carr isn’t checking every play, but it makes a huge difference returning a coordinator and quarterback, as both are on the same page with the calls.
Notre Dame will adjust its run game blocking depending on team
Asked Marcus Freeman about Notre Dame running more gap runs against MSU and Purdue after going zone-heavy against Wisconsin.
— Jack Soble (@jacksoble56) September 28, 2026
He said it's partly based on the opponent, but:
"We've done a little bit more gap scheme stuff because our guys are doing it, performing it pretty well."
I love that Freeman explained how his offense gets prepared for an opponent, trying to find the holes in the defense and making adjustments to the line. The gap scheme was used mostly against Purdue, but the line can run zone as well. The Irish being able to have multiple ways the line can go should be terrifying for opposing defenses.
North Carolina’s front poses some challenges for Notre Dame
Game week
— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) September 28, 2026
at North Carolina
📍 Chapel Hill, North Carolina
📆 Saturday, Oct. 3
⏰ 12 PM ET
📺 ESPN#GoIrish☘️ | @tirerack pic.twitter.com/qIIlLo9LDj
Like the Irish, the Tar Heels have a great group of defensive lineman who can do multiple things. They’ll twist and stunt, which is how they often get their pressures instead of sending extra players. UNC will rotate in players who might not look the part, but can make the play. Notre Dame will need to be ready for the line game this weekend.
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Marcus Freeman updates injured WR, previews North Carolina
