Notre Dame is reported to be focusing on Andy Ludwig for OC
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Notre Dame Football is reported to be focusing on Utah’s Andy Ludwig for offensive coordinator
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If that was the case he would have been hired already.
The morning after he accepted the job I’d have to think he asked himself if he was in over his head.
He didn’t just go from DC to HC, he made the leap to the HC at one of the most high profile jobs in the country.
That’s a tremendous amount of pressure on a young assistant coach.
The problem with saying "I have to think this and that for someone else"... you are basically giving your perspective! MF made it to the NFL, he has coached in college and been very successful! He allows himself to be teachable, seeking out men like Lou Hiltz and Tressel.. amongst others! He comes from a strong family! He has been setting himself up for this! Ludwig would be a GREAT fit! TR is going to have success.. LUDWIG IS PROVEN.. if he comes. Regardless MF knows what he wants!
I think I understand why you gotta think that way, but to me this seems like one more riff on the old "the only reason Freeman kept Rees is that Swarbrick MADE him do it" bromide. Parting shot kind of thing.
That’s true, TR was signed to a contract prior to MF being signed to a contract.
There's a difference between saying "I have to think this and that for someone else" and "I have to think this and that of someone else." I believe that john0gaunt is saying the latter.
For example, I can say that I have to think for you, because you're such an idiot that you're incapable of thinking for yourself. That's a very different thing from saying that when I think of idiots, I think of you, because you're only capable of thinking of yourself.
Now, I don't think any of those things. I have no idea whether you're an idiot or not. But I did want to give you an example that got your attention. 😆
Yes, he was, but i suspect that if Freeman didn't want Rees, he would have been gone. Hell, all he would have had to do was to say it might be a good idea to follow Kelly to LSU, and Rees would have hit the road.
Not really.
Freeman was a player's choice and as quickly as BK 86'd himself ND made sure to say here's our coach. It had momentum with players. That's contagious amid the locker room, recruits etc.
But....the big BUT...
Freeman you'd have to think was a little surprised to be offered the job. No HC experience straight to leading the Dome? Come on. Pinch me already.
I can imagine he took a very gracious but reserved approach heading into year one with honestly landing a job way above his experience grade.
All that said perhaps you're seeing Freeman start to assert some of his own weight on how he'd like his staff assembled.
That's a wonderful thing and make no mistake when you lose with your guys you get better. When you lose with someone else's guy you make excuses.. at least privately.
Here's to getting someone that brings a fresh approach to a stale passing game that can't seem to recruit perimter playmaking and anything resembling a high quanity QB.
Can't blame the kids at the QB and WR spot...
Why the hell would you want to play in a Brian Kelly offense. Hard to show your arm strength throwing 3 yard curl and sit routes or TE drag routes.
Hard to show your athleticism when you sit down after every SAFE route and immediately get tackled.
Kids are suckers for excitement and showing off ability.
That's the damn offensive coach we need.
Immediately!!!
Well there you go Bob, you assumed I was responding to John when I was responding to someone else..... It's amazing how we can say who is the idiot now! 😁.. I am not referring to you as I don't know if you are an idiot or not.... BUT, you should know what you are responding to before responding! Prov26:4....🙏all in good fun ...
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Going out in public together to Hockey game is more than an interview
This hire is truly the most important of his coaching career. Tommy Rees ties to Brian Kelly was a built-in excuse for taking an 11-win regular season team and turning it into an 8 win regular season. In the process managing to lose to 3 unranked opponents and USC. All things that had not been done since 2016
The QB room was a mess (ND was 40-6 the previous 4 seasons)
The WR room was a mess (ND was 40-6 the previous 4 seasons)
Tommy Rees sucks (ND was 40-6 the previous 4 seasons)
Well, we are all out of excuses, and this is officially Freeman's program. No Brian Kelly, No Jeff Quinn, No Del Alexander and now No Tommy Rees.
It is put up or shut up time next year. MF was brought here not to maintain 10-11 wins and be in CFP contention. That wasn't good enough for the "Fanbase". So next year better not have losses to unranked teams and 2nd tier bowl games on the itinerary.
The QB room was a mess (ND was 40-6 the previous 4 seasons)
The WR room was a mess (ND was 40-6 the previous 4 seasons)
Tommy Rees sucks (ND was 40-6 the previous 4 seasons)
Well, we are all out of excuses, and this is officially Freeman's program. No Brian Kelly, No Jeff Quinn, No Del Alexander and now No Tommy Rees.
It is put up or shut up time next year. MF was brought here not to maintain 10-11 wins and be in CFP contention. That wasn't good enough for the "Fanbase". So next year better not have losses to unranked teams and 2nd tier bowl games on the itinerary.
Ludwig would be an interesting hire. Lots of experience (25+ years, including two stops at Utah, 2 years at Wisconsin, and 4 years at Vanderbilt) as an OC. When he was at Fresno State, he developed David Carr into the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. He was OC at Vanderbilt when it nearly upset ND a couple of years back.
Utah ran lots of multiple TE sets, something that obviously meshes with ND's offensive philosophy. And Utah ran the ball well, something that will appeal to Freeman. And I am sure it didn't hurt that Utah beat USC twice last season.
Not sure what kind of recruiter Ludwig is.
Utah ran lots of multiple TE sets, something that obviously meshes with ND's offensive philosophy. And Utah ran the ball well, something that will appeal to Freeman. And I am sure it didn't hurt that Utah beat USC twice last season.
Not sure what kind of recruiter Ludwig is.
You seem pretty salty about the Freeman hire. Yes, ND was 40-6 the 4 seasons before Freeman, but you appear to forget that Freeman got hired because Kelly walked out on ND. Are you blaming Freeman for that?
And yes, Kelly left the QB and WR positions in weak shape. That is on Kelly, not Freeman. I was not among the "TR sucks" crowd, but I don't think it can be reasonably disputed that Freeman was left with some big holes to fill on offense.
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Notre Dame Football was 44-6, not 40-6, the previous 4 seasons before Marcus Freeman.
You're right, I stand corrected. But I was merely quoting the numbers cited in the post I responded to.
Lots of different opinions on TR over the last few seasons on the board. I was a fan. MF is a young coach. TR cannot learn from MF as he is learning. It was this year or next TR was gone and if you think he will be at Bama more than one season I highly doubt it. TR will be an OC in the Pros or a CFB HC in the next 2-3 years. He needed to kiss Saban’s for a bit Job. Who knows, he might lead ND someday as he is ND through and through.
As for MF, he needs to open the wallet and make a sure hire. Someone he can learn from as well. A very experienced OC. He didn’t play O. He never coached O. He doesn’t know O. He needs that to fill in his gaps.
I don’t know which candidate that is, but I hope they are proven and have a few years on them.
As for MF, he needs to open the wallet and make a sure hire. Someone he can learn from as well. A very experienced OC. He didn’t play O. He never coached O. He doesn’t know O. He needs that to fill in his gaps.
I don’t know which candidate that is, but I hope they are proven and have a few years on them.
I mean we pay them pretty handsomely. Chip Long was a good OC. Rees is now at Bama. We likely land Ludwig. I wouldn’t say that’s not a terrific group of OCs.
Ludwig is hands down my favorite after studying up on all of them. I liked Brady, then Klein, then did my homework on Ludwig, but admittedly hadn’t looked at the stats until yesterday. I liked that Klein was younger, but he comes off as very socially awkward in interviews and hasn’t done more than 1 years worth of stuff. But, if the staff hires Ludwig it was the best possible outcome imo. As good as the name Brady sounds, Ludwig is experienced, good wherever he goes, had the best numbers of any of them, dropped 45 on Ohio State, dropped 40+ on USC 2x’s and had a better ranked offense than Klein. I bet he will put Hartman is the Heisman conversation and help Buchner reach his potential. He’s the best realistic outcome I can think of and if CJ Carr cares about getting better, he will be ecstatic at this move. Minchey is in good hands if this plays out.
Lot of hoopla about Joe Brady and I get why. That said, Ludwig has been around the game so long that he literally helped get David Carr to the #1 overall pick. Why not get two Carr’s to the #1 pick?
Lot of hoopla about Joe Brady and I get why. That said, Ludwig has been around the game so long that he literally helped get David Carr to the #1 overall pick. Why not get two Carr’s to the #1 pick?
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Really, so you think that's just a bromide? Just some silly little line some ND fans keep repeating. And he could have fired Rees any time he wanted, and Swarbrick would have merely blushed and then MF would have just hired someone else because what else would he do, he is the HC after all?
I don't remember the timeline precisely, but didn't Rees say he was 'staying', like on twitter and shit, before MF was even hired? And so I figure the reason such a bromide even got started, is on account of a lot people thought or figured it might be true, like I say on account of the timing, and of how things unfolded in those fateful days. They didn't just make it up out of pure blue sky only with which to diminish Tommy Rees, or MF, or whoever. Though ND fans are surely quite capable of such easy fictionalizing. And even beyond the chronology, it was something that came to mind for many fans on account of the notion of ND, at the institutional level, wanting or seeming to want TR around, as an alum, and a rising young coach who might one day become HC.....
So it's more like an understandable mental reflex than a bromide, a not-unreasonable hunch, especially given what a loaded subject anything to do with BK is for serious ND fans and alums, and naturally they're going to 'riff' on something as juicy as that. I suppose with TR getting hired by mighty Bama, and having received the ultimate coaching imprimatur, that in any case he's getting the last laugh. I'll just say for myself that it wouldn't surprise me, or at least not shock me if it were true. That Swarbrick had been the one really to have retained TR in the aftermath of BK's bombshell departure, over and above any HC's prerogatives, even though such a suggestion, and such a possibility does indeed redound poorly to both TR and of course to MF. And that it was in fact an initial condition of MF first receiving the job.
But be all that as it may or may not be, predictably banal bromide or no, it's MF's call now in no uncertain terms....
I do not think there is any question but that TR was Jack's hire all the way. We know that Kelly asked both MF and TR to come with him to LSU, because they both said so. MF told Kelly he wanted some time to think about it. I think Swarbrick reached out to TR so quickly to keep him on as OC because he wanted some continuity for the new head coach, whoever that might be. Swarbrick settled pretty quickly on MF as his choice, but by then TR was already under contract to stay on. I suppose you are right that MF could have fired TR and insisted upon bringing on his own OC, but that would have put Swarbrick in a very bad position, and there was simply no way MF would have done that to Swarbrick. In addition, I think MF thought well enough of TR to keep him on as OC even without Swarbrick's thumb on the scale, though I admittedly don't have any inside scoop.
As for TR going to work for Saban, I think that is simply TR looking to advance himself, and shouldn't be viewed as MF pushing him out the door. It is my opinion that TR is ultimately looking to land an OC position in the NFL, where his father is pretty well connected, and this job at Alabama will burnish his resume, assuming he doesn't flop in the position.
25 comments and 1,000 views and yet 0 conversation about this coach's potential as a recruiter at Notre Dame. Smh
Are we Alabama now (stacked with top five prospects at every position) and all we need is a X's and O's coach to get us over the hump?
Ludwig has no charisma very few high-end prospects that he's responsible for recruiting if any.
Has never recruited five star athletes at a major power five institution versus other major power 5 institutions and there's zero on his resume or in his skill set that shows that he can
Why in the world is this man being considered for the second most important position in the organization at ND?
The guy looks like he has zero ability to relate/connect with 18 year olds.
How does this coach move the needle on the talent procuring side of the equation?
Are we Alabama now (stacked with top five prospects at every position) and all we need is a X's and O's coach to get us over the hump?
Ludwig has no charisma very few high-end prospects that he's responsible for recruiting if any.
Has never recruited five star athletes at a major power five institution versus other major power 5 institutions and there's zero on his resume or in his skill set that shows that he can
Why in the world is this man being considered for the second most important position in the organization at ND?
The guy looks like he has zero ability to relate/connect with 18 year olds.
How does this coach move the needle on the talent procuring side of the equation?
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Swarbrick had his thumb on the scale.... I hate that idiom, and I'm not comfortable using it, but I guess that's what we're saying. I'm Jack Swarbrick, I can fire both of you any time I want, without explanation or justification, and I'm saying that TR is staying on as OC at least for now. I'm trying not to be overbearing about it, but that's the deal. Quite frankly that part of it dovetails perfectly with hiring someone like MF in the first place, who's not really in a position to reject something like that. Nobody else wanted to hire MF, and getting the ND job was a gift, and a stroke of incredible luck for him, the timing or the serendipity of it all. So if his boss insists in not quite so many words that his OC is going to continue to be TR, as I say at least for the time being, wtf is MF going to do in return, turn down the job? He could, he could follow BK to LSU, he could look for another DC job, or take the Duke job, as supposedly Duke was maybe interested in MF as HC...
But most likely he's just going to accept those terms, and become ND's new head football coach, with TR staying on as OC. Which is what happened. We just don't know for sure if TR really was forced upon him or not.
But most likely he's just going to accept those terms, and become ND's new head football coach, with TR staying on as OC. Which is what happened. We just don't know for sure if TR really was forced upon him or not.
For anyone questioning Ludwig's ability to recruit, ND recruits itself. Present well, don't arrive at mom's house drunk or insult the parents, and win games. That's all he needs to do.
More important than "identify" with kids is to be able to identify and develop talent and then motivate your players.
The rest will take care of itself.
More important than "identify" with kids is to be able to identify and develop talent and then motivate your players.
The rest will take care of itself.
That's a fair point, and recruiting is most definitely part of the job. But that's a boon for you, though. If he really is kind of a shitty recruiter. Because you can whale on about it relentlessly. And if true that is a talking point that will keep on giving. So don't knock it.....
Yup, sure do.
[Here lie, like a murder of dead crows, lots of dead darlings, in the form of clever responses to your long post, clever responses that warmed my egocentric little scribbler's heart...]
Fair enough. I do think Swarbrick worked hard to keep Rees, and he did state that his first priority was to do so. But not because it was more important than hiring Freeman, but because he was closer to losing him to Kelly. Now, I feel sure that that behind the scenes Freeman worked just as hard to keep Rees, and made it clear both to Swarbrick and Rees that he wanted him.
Perhaps that's where we differ. I'll go so far as to say that Freeman wanting to keep Rees made it easier for Swarbrick to offer him the HC position, but if Freeman had had some other reasonable alternative in mind, I feel sure that Swarbrick would have entertained it. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if they kicked a lot of possibilities around during the interview.
Now, many people repeat this notion as fact (you haven't done that here, since you buried an "it wouldn't surprise me that" in there earlier on). Repeat it to the point that it is a "commonplace" notion, and a notion "lacking in freshness or originality" — hackneyed, in other words. Meaning, it is a commonplace and hackneyed notion, or a bromide. So I stand behind my word choice.
First I've read this. Where do you get the information that Rees had signed a contract by the time Swarbrick offered Freeman the job?
I'm pretty much where you are on this.
I'm with you on this as well.
Not really.
Of course, but that doesn't change anything that I've said. This just dives into speculations as to why Freeman might have kept Rees on without really wanting him.
It's possible that Freeman suggested that Rees needed to start looking for another job. But it seems unlikely to me. I have the feeling that Rees is about to turn a corner this year and put it all together.
Seems to me that out of Braylon James, Jaden Greathouse, Rico Flores and the two Kaleb Smiths we ought to find some decent perimeter playmaking ability.
Seems to me also that Sam Hartman at least resembles a high-quality QB.
I never said you were an idiot. In fact, I was careful not to. I mean, wasn't I?
So, catch me up here. Just who were you responding to exactly, if not to john0gaunt's "I gotta think Coach Freeman knew who he wanted"? I didn't see anyone else saying anything remotely like "I have to think this and that for someone else."
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