Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman wasn't remotely happy with Aneyas Williams on Saturday night after his choreographed celebration drew an excessive celebration penalty. On Monday, Freeman made it clear he wasn't happy with himself for his reaction. Still, there are signs that despite things being all good personally between the running back and his coach, there might be a shift in the backfield.
After Williams and his teammates were penalized, the camera quickly panned to Freeman, whose expression began with confusion but quickly shifted to fury. He shouted, “What are we doing?!” multiple times, each with more emotion than the last. When Williams returned to the sideline, Freeman gave him an animated talking-to that made it clear he was furious. Williams' reaction made it clear he knew he was in trouble.
On Monday, Freeman told the assembled media that he regretted how he had spoken to Williams and that it had been caught on camera. The Notre Dame head coach said he believes that kind of situation should be handled in-house and out of the public eye.
He also wanted to make sure that Williams knew things were good between the two of them.
The @NDFootball depth chart for this weekend’s game at Purdue.
— Notre Dame Football PR Team (@NDFootballPR) September 21, 2026
Saturday, Sept. 26 | 2 p.m. ET | Peacock pic.twitter.com/AvMFU17KNa
Notre Dame football depth chart signals real competition between Aneyas Williams and Nolan James Jr.
“I told him I was proud of him,” Freeman said during the weekly press conference Monday afternoon. “He’s got a lot on his plate and a lot of expectations. He puts a lot of pressure on himself to be this great running back, and he works tremendously hard. I’m really proud of who he is and the leadership he brings."
Williams will be plenty important for Notre Dame the rest of the way; however, he might also be on the verge of a reduced role. On Saturday night, Williams had just one touch in the second half after his first-half penalty. Meanwhile, Nolan James Jr., who had been serving as Williams' understudy, not only got almost all the second-half carries but also had the best game of any Irish running back this season.
On Monday, Notre Dame seemingly rewarded James for his 121 yards and a touchdown by naming him a co-starter on the official Week 4 depth chart ahead of the Purdue game.
Getting the "or" next to Williams' name on the depth chart and putting James' name right after it is the latest sign that Notre Dame coaches have been frustrated with the lack of Williams' production (he had 29 yards on just 9 carries on Saturday night), and a seeming follow-through on comments running backs coach Ja'Juan Seider made last week.
"I really think he's feeling that pressure, and I've got to do a good job helping him," Seider said after positing that Williams has been pressing. "Sometimes it might be taking a step back to watch somebody else play. That's what we find out as coaches. What do we do to help him?"
With the new depth chart, it looks like Williams might be watching someone else play even more. The situation will certainly be interesting when Notre Dame takes on Purdue on Saturday afternoon.
Add us as a preferred source on Google