Notre Dame's Latest Football Hire: A Game-Changer Ahead of the Curve

Marcus Freeman tabs PFF's Anthony Treash Notre Dame as the new Director of Analytics. Notre Dame is keeping up.

Notre Dame Head Coach Marcus Freeman at Notre Dame spring football practice Thursday, March 7, 2024, at the Irish Athletics Center in South Bend. | GREG SWIERCZ / USA TODAY NETWORK

College Football is changing in a big way ... and Notre Dame is keeping up

Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame made a big hire this weekend at a time in the year when big football hires are rare.

The Irish have tabbed PFF's Anthony Treash to be the team's first Director of Analytics. This is a futuristic hire for Notre Dame that shows it understands the trends within the sport and where it's headed.

And where might that be? Towards more of a professional analytic type model when it comes to roster build and construction.

Often when there are major changes in the direction of college football trends, Notre Dame seems slow to react and operates from behind the curve. It's SO refreshing to see the Irish proactively seeking ways to become more modern and utilize analytics more as a program when making decisions.

This is a move that shows Notre Dame brass understands and embraces where the sport is headed.

Sources: Notre Dame bolsters its NFL model, hiring PFF's Anthony Treash to key role https://t.co/YvWHMtfyGJ via @JohnDBrice1

— FootballScoop (@FootballScoop) August 10, 2024

How might this actually impact the program moving forward?

When I look at this move, it seems to indicate that Notre Dame is looking to let the raw analytics and numbers help inform some of the decisions they make about their team moving forward more than they previously have.

Numbers don't lie.

The Irish will now use them to determine more about the direction of the team.

The combination of the usage of raw data and Freeman's uniquely workable personality arms Notre Dame with both sides of the equation in terms of information. The personal and the analytic to navigate through the decision-making process. This may be the best blend for Notre Dame moving forward in the modern age of college football.

Notre Dame Football Legend Joe Montana Praises Head Coach Marcus Freeman


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