Notre Dame Coach Marcus Freeman is Focused on the Irish, But Cal Impresses Him
Not surprisingly, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman’s Monday news conference was all about the Irish -- their quarterback change and the issues that have led to an 0-2 start.
This Saturday’s opponent?
No one directed a question to Freeman about Cal for 30 minutes until I asked what he sees in the 2-0 Bears and quarterback Jack Plummer, who faced the Irish a year ago while playing at Purdue.
Notre Dame beat the Boilermakers 27-13 but Plummer acquitted himself, going 25-for-36 for 187 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. He is completing 69 percent of his passes through two games with the Bears and has four TDs vs. two picks.
“He’s a very accurate passer. Not so much a dual-threat guy, but a guy who will put the ball exactly where it needs to be,” said Freeman, who was defensive coordinator for the Irish last season.
“They’ve got a good offensive line — big, strong guys. They’re a good team. They’re 2-0 right now.”
Sounds like Freeman has watched tape of Cal’s first two games — wins over UC Davis and UNLV. It’s also likely his primary focus since Saturday’s 26-21 home loss to 20.5-point underdog Marshall has been his own team. Rightfully so.
On top of their poor play Saturday, the Irish must reboot their offense after a season-ending shoulder injury to starting quarterback Tyler Buchner.
Redshirt sophomore Drew Pyne will draw the starting assignment Saturday against a Cal defense that is tied for 29th nationally, allowing 13.5 points per game. The Irish offense is scoring just 15.5 points per game, which ranks 117 among 131 FBS teams.
“Defensively, I know the coordinator’s son (Jackson Sirmon) is the middle linebacker and what you see is him getting a lot of the guys lined up,” Freeman said. Peter Sirmon’s son also leads the Bears with 17 tackles.
“They’ve got a safety (Daniel Scott) who’s really, really good,” Freeman said. “They seem to be doing some really good things defensively in the red zone.
“And the punter’s pretty good, too.”
That’s senior Jamieson Sheahan, who leads the Pac-12 in punting average at 48.33 yards per kick.
Cover photo of Cal safety Daniel Scott by Darren Yamashita, USA Today
Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo
