Notre Dame Football: 3 biggest questions on defense for Irish in 2021
By Andrew Hall
How does the defense adapt to Marcus Freeman’s system?
During the signing day press conference, where Marcus Freeman made his first appearance as Notre Dame’s new defensive coordinator, he made it clear that it is his job to adapt his defense to the existing structure. Regardless of how Freeman adapts his terminology and scheme to fit the current roster, there are definitely things that he wants to do as a defensive coordinator.
Freeman used multiple fronts including a 3-3-5 during his time at Cincinnati, and like Clark Lea, he wants to use multiple defenses and put his players in the best position to play aggressively.
Fans of the Notre Dame football team should not expect huge changes in where personnel plays and lines up. The differences between Lea and Freeman will probably be found in the subtle changes in how he uses his players.
For example, in 2020, Lea utilized Kyle Hamilton as an in-the-box safety the majority of the time. This allowed the Irish star safety to make more tackles near the line of scrimmage and get his hands in the passing lanes. Freeman might think Hamilton’s skill set as a rangy safety would better serve this team, erasing all the mistakes and big plays at the back end of the defense.
Unfortunately for Irish fans, the answer to how Hamilton will be used will wait until fall as he recovers from off-season surgery. But, fans might get a glimpse of how Freeman moves the other chess pieces around during spring football.