You’d think Notre Dame is merely at the onset of a special few years. Yes, they almost reached the zenith of the sport last season, and there’s only 1 further step to be taken. But it did feel like they were ahead of schedule. HC Marcus Freeman has only been in his capacity for 3 years in total. His trajectory as a coach is pointed skywards. The program is well-equipped on the financial front to keep providing him with competitive rosters. Yet, this off-season has entailed a backward step that undercuts all the progress they’ve made under Freeman. Things in South Bend aren’t as great as they should be.

When the emotions from losing Natty subsequently settle down, Notre Dame can take solace in their efforts to even get to that juncture. However, success inevitably breeds its own kinds of problems. For Marcus Freeman, it bred substantial interest from the NFL. At least the Irish were able to avert that, but they couldn’t quite do so with other personnel. In a revelation that’s equal parts expected and troubling, a mass exodus has ensued out of South Bend. A multitude of key contributors to the National Championship run are departing for greener pastures than even the leprechauns could conjure.

CFB analyst and Penn State alum Adam Breneman relayed some very concerning developments in the aftermath of the Natty. He used his platform to share the beats of this aforementioned mass exodus, with the IG post forthcoming. All three levels of the hierarchy have been breached. The front office, the coaching staff and the players themselves. Every foundational pillar has been shaken, and Marcus Freeman is now tasked with keeping what he’s built intact. From the top down, GM Chad Bowden has departed to take up the same role across the country at arch-rivals USC. With all due respect, trading South Bend for southern Cali is enticing in itself. But Breneman pointed to the Trojans quadrupling his $250k salary to an even $1 million too. 

Yes, the USC program is a far cry from Notre Dame right now, but Bowden has shown he can awaken a sleeping giant. He’ll just have to contend with the traitor moniker he’s about to be tagged with for joining the other side of the ​​Jeweled Shillelagh trophy. Elsewhere, coach Freeman has lost his trusted and much more experienced partner Al Golden. Freeman is a defensive guy himself, so losing his defensive coordinator is irrefutably a blow to his modus operandi.

Notre Dame built a resolute defense, which was top 5 in the country last season. Golden exits to take the same role with the Bengals, who’ll view him as a messiah after they wasted an MVP-calibre season from Joe Burrow owing to a gaping defense. At least the Irish faithful will understand Al Golden’s move and absolve him unlike Bowden. Thirdly, the next and most quantitatively high phase of this exodus affected the other side of football.

No less than 6 offensive linemen have left via the transfer portal. Including “3 of their top 6 guys”, as per Breneman’s discernment. This is in addition to QB1 Riley Leonard already departing after running out of eligibility. Marcus Freeman has to essentially build his entire offensive spine back. In spite of making it all the way to the Championship with a 3rd year HC, it’s rational to think Notre Dame are trending backwards after these developments. Freeman has his work cut out for him. But there is some respite, some inkling of a silver lining. It’s not all doom and gloom, can’t be with those shiny golden lids!

Marcus Freeman has a couple of contingencies in place to alleviate some of this turmoil

First up, the more tangible positives. While the Irish have lost 6 O-linemen, the trenches are still in a relatively solid place. Marcus Freeman can look forward to getting two key pieces to return from injury. Adam Breneman spoke about Charles Jagusah and Ashton Craig, who were meant to be contributors for 2024 but were sidelined, filling the void to an extent. Yes it’ll be a new makeup to the line of scrimmage, and these players will need time to bed in and build chemistry. That’s where one of the intangible positives comes into effect.

Like it or despise it, Notre Dame being independent does have its benefits. They’ve made out like bandits in terms of monetary reward for their deep run this season. Another advantage of being independent shows up in their schedule. Because of ND’s affiliation with the ACC in terms of scheduling, they’ve been afforded a relatively “soft” one. This should allow the new players to get to speed and iron out their deficiencies before the playoffs roll about. Safe to say the rest of the CFB sphere doesn’t like Notre Dame’s independent status. However, Freeman will just think, “They hate us because they ain’t us”.

Losing Al Golden and Chad Bowden is unequivocally a big blow. There’s no real positive spin on those facets. Freeman just got his recruiting prowess and defensive prowess cut down. It remains to be seen how Notre Dame will cope. But they’ve got a high floor, and we’ve seen their ceiling is as high as any program in the country. This upcoming season will test Marcus Freeman’s mettle and ability to overcome adversity.