Notre Dame Got Much Needed Rest During The Bye Week
Notre Dame is coming out of the first of a pair of bye weeks. The Irish had been going at it since late July when they started training camp a week earlier than usual due to beginning the season with a week zero game against Navy in Ireland. That was the first of eight consecutive games for the Irish.
“We had a much-needed bye week,” Irish head coach Marcus Freeman said on Monday as his team gears back up for action against Pittsburgh this weekend. “For our players, mentally and physically, they needed it.
"But also, we challenged them,” Freeman continued. "They had to get better. So, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday we had to practice, and we had to get after it and really make sure that we were improving in all areas of the game of football but also in the areas that we’ve been deficient. I was really pleased with those three days of practices.”
Those three practices came last week, while most of the university was on fall break. With no game to prepare for, Freeman and his staff were able to spend more time without game plans and on roster development.
"Monday, for the guys that played in the game, was a typical Monday,” Freeman explained. "I mean they just played a tough game Saturday night so we couldn’t go out and really go after those guys as much as the twos and the threes, we had a lot of good-on-good reps and Tuesday and Wednesday the ones practiced. We had to get after it. But the structure of practice was different because there was a lot of good on good, but the chance for twos and threes to get a lot of reps at the end of practice was important.
"That time is so crucial, and you talk about development of the bottom half of your roster and the future of your roster,” Freeman continued. "To be able to see those guys, we’ve got to watch as coaches. I mean the coach’s watching. Let’s evaluate it and call things that they know how to do. Like, let’s give them a chance to show us what they can do. Not...they’re not going to be able to show us what they can do if they’re confused. So, I don’t care if we have two defenses called, three offensive plays called. I wanted to see what those young guys could do and was pleased.”
The coaching staff had Wednesday afternoon off after finishing their film analysis and evaluations of that day’s practice. Then they scattered around the country Thursday and Friday to see as many of their committed recruits as possible. "Thursday and Friday, we were all out recruiting and then Saturday, I gave them Saturday off and then the majority of Sunday off so a lot of them could go see their kids play flag football,” said Freeman. “Then we got back in (Sunday) just to go over a couple of things. I thought that was important to be able to give them a chance to be a father and a husband for a weekend.”
Freeman was also able to spend a little time as both a dad and a fan watching other games on Saturday. He watched the end of Ohio State’s win over Penn State Saturday afternoon after his wife had completed running a half marathon.
"I don’t want to watch a team we’re going to play, because then you feel like you’re working. I was able to watch a little bit of the USC-Utah game. I watched a quarter of that. A little bit of the Florida State-Duke game. I was just kind of turning back and forth a little bit and then I went to bed. I needed to catch up on some sleep.
"You kind of watch the ball,” Freeman said of how he watches a game on TV. "When you’re a fan you watch the ball. When you’re game planning, you watch specifics. Offense, defense, what are you trying to do. It depends on what I’m watching at that moment, but when I’m with my kids I try to just watch the ball and kind of watch the game.”
Notre Dame has another bye week coming up in two weeks on Nov. 11, a week after its game at Clemson and a week before Senior Day against Wake Forest on Nov. 18.
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