Marcus Freeman used some of the tough lessons he learned his first two years as Notre Dame's coach to help him navigate the longest season in the FBS' modern era.
It's prepared him for what's next — taking the same script and rewriting the ending.
Seven months after losing the national championship game to his alma mater, Ohio State, the 39-year-old Freeman returns for his fourth season trying to balance the usually lofty expectations for No. 6 Notre Dame with the reality that the Fighting Irish must start fresh.
“There's valuable lessons we learned last year, but I continue to remind them that 2024 has nothing to do with this 2025 team," Freeman said when summer camp opened. "So let's utilize those lessons, some of those good and bad things we learned last year. But they understand we've stopped talking about 2024.”
A quick glance at the roster and coaching staff reinforces Freeman's point.
He hired longtime defensive coordinator Chris Ash, the former Rutgers coach, when Al Golden left for the NFL. He found two key receivers, Malachi Fields and Will Pauling, in the transfer portal. And with quarterback Riley Leonard now playing for the Indianapolis Colts, Freeman chose CJ Carr — who made one appearance for the Fighting Irish during last season’s run to the national championship game but has not thrown a college pass — to be the starting quarterback over Kenny Minchey.
In other spots, things look comfortingly familiar.
Preseason All-American running back Jeremiyah Love is running behind a big offensive line with two returning starters and many more experienced players. Defensively, five starters from the championship game return, three in the secondary.
That means Notre Dame's players and coaches can put that knowledge to use, even as Freeman turns the page on his most successful season with the Irish.
“There's a lot of guys on this roster, in this program — coaches and players — that weren't here last year," Freeman said. “This is about the 2025 team and the journey to reach our full potential.”
Fields was a third team all-ACC selection at Virginia while Pauling was a key cog as a 10-game starter at Wisconsin last season
Freeman also found other help in the portal.
Former Arkansas tight end Ty Washington could see more action than expected because of injuries. Former Alabama cornerback DeVonta Smith is expected to start in the secondary, former Southern California defensive lineman Elijah Hughes could be a rotational player and former North Carolina kicker Noah Burnette could solidify one of last season’s worst field goal units.
Promising pass rusher Boubacar Traore looks like he'll be ready for the Aug. 31 opener at No. 10 Miami. He missed most of last year with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.
Freeman expects two other players — offensive lineman Charles Jagusah and tight end Cooper Flanagan — to come back this season, too. Flanagan suffered an Achilles tendon injury in the CFP quarterfinal victory over Georgia.
Jagusah was supposed to start at right guard or left tackle after missing most of 2024 with a torn pectoral muscle. But he fractured the humerus bone in his left arm in a July utility task vehicle accident in Wyoming. Sullivan Absher has taken Jagusah's place in camp.
Notre Dame lists 22 defensive lineman on its roster. ... Tight end Eli Raridon returns for his senior season as a married man. ... Sixth-year tight end Kevin Bauman announced his career is over after suffering a season-ending knee injury.
Notre Dame's big tests come early. In addition to the Sunday night opener against the 'Canes, Notre Dame hosts No. 19 Texas A&M in another prime-time game following a Week 2 bye. The Irish also visit Arkansas on Sept. 27 and host No. 25 Boise State on Oct. 4 and have a bevy of rivalry games with Purdue, Southern Cal and Navy.
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FILE - Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love (4) runs the ball during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Stanford, Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in South Bend, Ind. (AP Photo/Michael Caterina, File)
