Notre Dame fans have waited a very long time for the kind of performance they saw from the Irish in the crisp November air last Saturday night.
Beating top-five teams are rare enough, dominating them though, that’s a different level entirely.
Notre Dame made a statement Saturday night. The Freeman Era is here,
and it will be a thrilling ride that will feature more “upside” than the previous regime.
Winning the way Notre Dame did dominate the ballgame in all three phases for all four quarters catches eyeballs.
It was the kind of win that Notre Dame fans hoped Freeman would provide but up until last weekend
was thought to have to be a thing to come in future years.
Let’s take a look at five ways this win immediately changes the narrative around the program.
The early part of the season was rough for the Irish. Losing to Ohio State was certainly understandable,
but Marshall? Not so much. Add a no-show loss to Stanford in the mix and it didn’t take long for questions to arise.
Did Freeman get the job too soon? Is he too much of a player’s coach? What is his “learning curve”?
Beating Clemson with such authority is just what the doctor ordered.
This win was a more complete and impressive victory than any of Brian Kelly’s during his decade-plus tenure.
This breeds instant credibility locally and nationally and puts out any flames of discussion
of him not being ready for this job or able to adjust to it quickly.