Wins are subjective in the offseason; no scoreboard illuminates any tangible results.
But as Notre Dame enters its third spring camp under Marcus Freeman today in blustery South Bend, Indiana, it’s hard not to tab the Fighting Irish as an offseason winner in college football.
With a depleted roster, the Irish won their final outing of 2023 -- a resounding wood-shedding of the Oregon State Beavers in the Sun Bowl to give the program a needed 10-win campaign.
That same closing week of last year, Freeman and Notre Dame formally welcomed back Mike Denbrock to run the Irish offense beginning in 2024 after Gerad Parker parlayed a statistically strong debut season as play-caller into his first-ever head coaching opportunity, a lifetime goal for Parker.
The Denbrock addition from the outside is noteworthy -- as is his school record-setting four-year contract term, as first reported by FootballScoop.
And, too, the Transfer Portal additions of on-field talent -- notably quarterback Riley Leonard, kicker Mitch Jeter and defensive end R.J. Oben, plus a bevy of wideouts -- again elevate expectations to have Notre Dame a viable College Football Playoff contender in 2024.
Yet, Freeman's and the Irish's best moves might have been a flurry of in-house retentions that might not have gotten enough ink at the time but simply cannot be overstated at the onset of a pivotal 10-month stretch in modern Notre Dame football history.
Consider:
- Notre Dame is hanging on to Al Golden, also with a reworked, four-year contract that pays him among the nation's top defensive coordinators as FootballScoop first reported. Multiple schools expressed interest in Golden for potential head coaching vacancies, among the specter of a return to the NFL as well. Keeping the oversee of a staunch Irish defense for a third year in a row is crucial, especially as the Irish transition a number of new players along the front seven of their defense.
- Speaking of key defensive additions by retention, take a look at Mike Mickens. Now the defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator, Mickens is back for his fifth season beneath the Golden Dome. Mickens, similar to Denbrock and Golden, owns a new deal with the Irish, who fended off multiple suitors -- most notably Southern Cal -- to retain Mickens. His raise and extension also vaults Mickens into a top tier among the nation's defensive backs/secondary coaches.
- Also, the Fighting Irish bring back Deland McCullough -- maybe the best running backs coach in the country -- and hang on to special teams ace Marty Biagi as well.
McCullough has drawn interest from the outside every year he's been at Notre Dame, and he's continuing an ascendant career that could be tracking toward a head coaching position.
Similarly, Biagi was pursued significantly by at least one SEC program, several sources told FootballScoop, but he's remained loyal to the program he first served as an analyst years ago and for which he and his entire family grew up rooting.
But Biagi isn't a single-facet asset; he's got past experience working on the defensive side of the ball, and it's expected that Biagi will begin showcasing those coaching traits as soon as the Irish open camp.
Later Thursday, Freeman spoke on record about Biagi's increased duties. He also spotlighted Notre Dame special teams analyst Jesse Schmitt.
“Marty’s coached on the defensive side of the ball before," Freeman said to a question from FootballScoop, "and this is something I’ve had a conversation with Marty about as he continues to grow in the coaching profession. Special teams he’s good, right? How can he continue to challenge himself and add some defensive responsibilities? I thought this was the perfect way to do that.
“We had talked before we made Max (Bullough) the full-time linebackers coach last year, maybe it’s you help with linebackers a little bit more. Right now, it’s perfect for him to help with the DBs and it’s a credit to him and he’s buying in and in those defensive meetings and doing a good job.”
Freeman pointed to Notre Dame's holistic approach to special teams but also specifically singled out Schmitt.
“Credit to Jesse Schmitt, who is our special teams analyst,” said Freeman, now 19-8 atop Notre Dame. “To be able to help Coach Biagi be able to prepare for practice and those kinds of things is really crucial, but all hands are on deck with special teams. Ninety percent of our coaches are involved in making sure we all help out on special teams.”
Similarly, as Notre Dame prepares for a litany of recruits -- both committed and uncommitted -- to visit their Thursday work inside the Irish Athletics Center, it does so still with personnel ace Chad Bowden in the fold.
Freeman also expounded on the value that Bowden has brought to the Irish program.
“Chad’s elite at what he does," Freeman said to a second question from FootballScoop. "The opportunity for him to lead our entire personnel staff is, to me, something that’s earned and he’s earned that right and he’s doing a great job.
“He does such a good job with what he does; that’s not just connecting with recruits but planning and leading a group of people in evaluations. And Dre, I speak about Dre in the same light. He’s done a great job in his role.
“It’s very important, the consistency, but it’s more important that we have the right people and people can do that role and perform at a high level.”
It was just the end of January, first of February that numerous sources told FootballScoop that Michigan had approached Bowden about an upper-tier personnel position within the Wolverines' program, now guided by Sherrone Moore.
Bowden stayed loyal to Freeman, the man he first worked with at Cincinnati and followed to Notre Dame as the first move that Freeman made back in 2021 -- when he still was new to the job as Fighting Irish defensive coordinator.
Bowden is expected to be formally announced as Notre Dame's general manager in football, and though the Irish recruiting department lost Caleb Davis to Parker's new Troy staff, they've retained Dre Brown, promoted into Bowden's former role as director of recruiting and elevated Carter Auman -- two key cogs among a small but fierce group whom Bowden, Freeman & Co. rely upon.
Lastly, and most recently, Chris O'Leary's departure to the NFL for a variety of reasons saw the Irish lose an ace coach and underrated recruiter. It also saw them able to elevate Max Bullough, a former Michigan State and NFL player who already effectively served as Notre Dame's linebackers coach throughout the 2023 year and who had been poised to be snatched away by Bill O'Brien for his new Boston College staff.
Thus, despite temps this morning lingering in the 30s, hope again springs eternal for Notre Dame -- and this time, even sans scoreboard, there's a sense the Irish are coming off an offseason of victories.