Marcus Freeman knows the pressure squarely is on his team after it dropped back-to-back games to open the season.
No. 24 Notre Dame (0-2) kicks off against in-state rival Purdue (2-1) on Saturday afternoon in South Bend, Ind., unafraid to play with some semblance of desperation.
To maintain a path toward playoff goals, the Fighting Irish know wins matter.
Notre Dame lost its first two games by a total of four points. They fell short 27-24 on the road against No. 10 Miami, and they lost 41-40 at home against No. 16 Texas A&M after a botched hold on an extra-point attempt opened the door for the Aggies to pull the upset.
Freeman said he and his coaching staff deserve the blame for a winless start.
“You can say this guy didn’t have his eyes where they needed to be,” Freeman said. “Well, you can say it’s the player’s fault, or you can say, ‘OK, were there times in practice that maybe your player didn’t have his eyes in the right spot, and the outcome might have been different but we tolerated it?’
“If a guy had a mental error on a play, he went the wrong way. You can make yourself feel better and say, ‘Well, that’s his fault, we did it right one time in practice.’ Or you can say, ‘Did we do it enough until we couldn’t get it wrong?’ ”
Notre Dame will try to focus on the details against a Purdue squad that looks much more formidable than it did a season ago.
The Boilermakers beat Ball State and Southern Illinois before losing to Southern California last weekend. They already have surpassed their win total from 2024, when they went 1-11 under Ryan Walters.
First-year coach Barry Odom is excited to turn his focus to Notre Dame after facing USC.
“What a great week,” Odom said. “What a great opportunity.
“… We know to the point of who we’re becoming as a team. We also, and I believe this, we’re really close to being a darn good football team that plays winning football. Another opportunity this week against what I think is a terrific team in every single area.”
Odom said he was disappointed in the loss to USC but saw reasons for optimism.
“We learned a lot about ourselves and our team in the (USC) game, about our organization. I think we’re close, but close doesn’t count.
“We’re judged, and I’m judged, on results and not effort. That’s the bottom line. The name of the game is we’ve got to win. And I’ve got to do everything I can to get us where we need to be.”
Quarterback CJ Carr is set to make his third start for Notre Dame. He has completed 62.9 percent of his passes for 514 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
Jeremiyah Love leads the Fighting Irish rushing attack with 127 yards and a touchdown.
Purdue signal-caller Ryan Browne has completed 63.6 percent of his passes for 786 yards, five touchdowns and four interceptions. Devin Mockobee has 230 rushing yards and three scores.
Notre Dame will try to tighten up its defense, which has struggled since former coordinator Al Golden left the program after last season. First-year defensive coordinator Chris Ash drew scrutiny after the Fighting Irish gave up 40 points last week.
Freeman did not rule out becoming more involved with the defense, although he said Ash would continue to be in charge of defensive play-calling.
“Will I spend more time?” Freeman said. “Maybe. If that’s what’s necessary, I will.”
