Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1479280
BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM SEPT. 24, 2022 13 UNDER THE DOME THEY SAID IT THEY SAID IT "I will take every ounce of frickin' blame for all of it because I'm in charge of the offense. That's fine." — Offensive coordinator TOMMY REES on Notre Dame's offensive struggles the first two weeks of the season "For me, I've been doubted my whole life. I had eight SEC offers going into my senior year; I got offered by Alabama. But playing in Connecticut everyone doubted me. Everyone said I wasn't good enough to come here. … It's not a chip on my shoulder, it's a boulder." — Junior quarterback Drew Pyne in August "Drew is a great example of what it is to be a Notre Dame person, a Notre Dame man. He loves being a part of Notre Dame. So did I. The only thing I've told him on FaceTime was just have fun, dude. People are going to talk all this s---. People are gonna say like the season's over. But think about how cool of an opportunity it is. Go out there and do your best. Don't second-guess yourself. There's a ton of doubters. So it's gonna be pretty sweet to win that game on Saturday." — Former Notre Dame quarterback Ian Book on Pyne in an inter- view with The Athletic "As I told them, if you continue to listen to all the voices out there that have opinions about what you're doing, or what we're doing as a football program, you will feel the weight of the world. Focus on the things that matter to dictate the outcome on Saturday. That's what I want the pressure being on. What things truly dictate the outcome of a game, and if we continue to focus on those things, we don't have to worry about added pressure from the outside. Don't play for coach Freeman." — Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman on the pressure his team faced after its 0-2 start "Sound the alarm bells. Since succeeding Brian Kelly last winter, head coach Marcus Freeman has lost his first three games, dating to last season's Fiesta Bowl. The defense hasn't been perfect by any means — the Irish have been extremely bend- don't-break and haven't created nearly as much havoc as expected up front — but for a team av- eraging only 15.5 points per game, it's clear where the issues lie. "Offensive coordinator Tommy Rees has been remarkably conservative through two games, but since completing a 54-yard pass to Styles on the first play of the season, Tyler Buchner is averaging just 6.5 yards per drop-back. He's 85th in Total QBR, hardly the stuff an aggressive play caller desires, and seven Drew Pyne pass attempts net- ted just 14 yards including a sack. Buchner left the game with a shoulder injury, which took away Notre Dame's best rushing option. The offense is a mess and might get even worse if Buchner has to miss time." — Bill Connelly of ESPN "College football comes at you fast. One min- ute, you're Notre Dame and you're feeling good about holding Ohio State to 21 points in the Horse- shoe; the next minute, you're Notre Dame losing at home to Marshall. One minute you're Marcus Freeman, the hot young coach set to take Notre Dame to new heights; the next minute you're Marcus Freeman, the first coach in school history to start 0-3 (dating to last season's Fiesta Bowl). And you just lost at home to Marshall." — Stewart Mandel of The Athletic "Notre Dame has been a tight end factory with eight players drafted at the position since 2011, including five in the top 100 picks. Mayer is next in the pipeline and projects as a longtime NFL starter. Because he doesn't have top-tier athleti- cism, Mayer isn't a lock to go in the top half of Round 1. But he is an outstanding pass catcher and functional blocker, and his elite competitiveness will be an easy sell in draft rooms." — The Athletic's Dane Brugler on ranking Notre Dame junior tight end Michael Mayer No. 8 on his 2023 NFL Draft Big Board prior to the start of the season "No one is touching [Alabama edge rusher] Will Anderson, but Foskey could push himself into the top 10 this year. He's that naturally talented. You just don't hear about him because there are so many studs at defensive end." — An anonymous NFC scout in an ESPN story that included Notre Dame junior defensive end Isaiah Foskey among four prospects who could rise into the top 10 of the 2023 NFL Draft PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER TOP TWEETS