In the wonderful world of college football as we know it today, the best head coaches are those who show that they can effectively adapt and make quick decisions. No matter how good a head coach you are, there will be some poor decisions at times, particularly with assistant coaching hires.

It’s only two games, but it appears that Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman may have made a horrible mistake with the hiring of defensive coordinator Chris Ash. The former Rutgers head coach and Ohio State assistant walked into a tremendous situation with the Fighting Irish defense and has completely derailed the momentum on that side of the football. That was evident during the team’s 41-40 home loss to the Texas A&M Aggies on Saturday night. 

It wasn’t long ago that Notre Dame’s defense was on an elite level under current Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Al Golden. He left the cupboard well stocked for Ash, and most believed all he had to do was “not mess it up.” After routinely hearing this offseason that Ash would be running the Notre Dame defense, not his own, that appears to have been a complete and utter lie. 

It is insulting to those fans who watch every Saturday to pretend like this is the same defense from the previous two years.

After some big struggles against the Miami Hurricanes in the season opener, the defense was even worse against Texas A&M. On top of the 41 points surrendered, they also allowed 488 total yards. There was constant miscommunication on the back end, and the Irish defense played slow throughout the majority of the contest, and uninspired football. It was an unsettling overall display. 

What’s the next move for Marcus Freeman? 

With only two games in the books, calling for someone to be fired feels a bit extreme. Regardless of what the next step is, something needs to change. This isn’t simply an issue of a playcaller getting comfortable. There is clearly a much deeper issue here. 

From Freeman’s perspective, the first step is admitting that you made a mistake. We have seen Freeman act quickly with bad hires in the past (hello Chansi Stuckey), so there is no reason to think he won’t act if he thinks there’s a problem. Whether he thinks there is one is a different story. 

Just imagine how secondary coach Mike Mickens feels right now watching this defense. He interviewed for the vacated position this offseason, but Freeman chose a defensive coordinator who hadn’t called a defense in five years and hadn’t called a good defense in a decade. It was an odd hire at the time, and it looks even worse right now. 

Regardless of whether you choose to ride the wave with Ash, a new voice needs to be injected into that defensive room. Whether that is giving Mickens more responsibility or Freeman getting back to his roots, this defense is clearly broken right now. Something needs to change. 

If things keep trending the way they are, this Fighting Irish staff could be in danger of losing the trust in that room. This program has worked hard to build a lot of momentum from what they accomplished during the 2024 season, and squandering it would be detrimental for the long-term health of this Notre Dame team. You can’t let things get to that point if you’re Freeman. 

There needs to be a lot of evaluating with this program moving forward, and it shouldn’t just center around the players. Right now, you have a major issue with your defensive coordinator spot. You need to start finding a fix for that problem as quickly as possible.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish News

Risky Notre Dame offseason hire has gone from a “don’t mess it up” situation to completely derailing the Fighting Irish identity 

The Notre Dame defense has a problem, and it is rooted with one offseason addition. This unit needs some answers, and quickly.

Ryan Roberts