First Thoughts: Notre Dame Head Coach Marcus Freeman Talks on the CFP Matchup with Indiana

Written by: Nate Comp (@NathanComp1)

The field is set, and the Hoosiers are officially one of just twelve teams in college football left with a chance to win the national title. Indiana will head North and face off against in-state foe Notre Dame in a standalone game on Friday, December 20th, night. Marcus Freeman met with the media to discuss his team’s draw in the bracket and what he expects from the Hoosiers. Here is what we had to say, specifically about Indiana.

Q: On the matchup with Indiana.

“Yeah, I mean Coach [Cignetti] has done a wonderful job to take this program and win 11 games in the Big Ten and to have this team ready to make a run in the playoffs. It’s a credit to Coach. I didn’t know much about him, so I took a minute and Googled him and looked at some of the things he has done in the past. He’s won everywhere he’s been. He’s done a great job and we expect a great opponent. I’ve just briefly started looking at them. They’re a talented team that really takes care of the football. They play complementary football. Their defense is a pressure, attacking defense that really makes you earn everything you get. And the offense has done a good job of taking care of the football, being consistent at what they do, and has done a lot of good things in the redzone.”

Q: On having home field advantage, but playing an in-state team.

“Shoot, if we could have chosen, I think you would want a team that maybe comes from 80-degree weather. The weather, obviously, isn’t going to give us a huge advantage with (Indiana) not being too far south from here. But what a great storyline, what a great opportunity it’s going to be to have two in-state teams playing each other in the first playoff game on a campus. It’s going to be an exciting time. Listen, we’ll have a home-field advantage just because of the first-ever playoff game at Notre Dame Stadium. Our crowd is going to be crazy. I can’t wait for it.”

Q: On Indiana’s passing attack versus Notre Dame’s struggling pass defense.

“USC was a really good offense that did some good things in the passing game. Made some plays. I think our guys are able to look at that game and see where some of our mistakes were and some of that you have to take your hat off to that opponent and to those players and that team. But our guys will be ready to go. The stats show that this offense is extremely... (has) done a really good job at the passing game and a passing attack, and so it will be a great opportunity for us to come up with a good plan and go compete on Friday."