Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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4 SUMMER 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED S econd-year Irish defensive coordinator Chris Ash had a lot thrown at him during his first 15 months on the job. The primary challenges for Ash this time last year were getting to know his players, re-familiarizing himself with a college game he had been away from for five years, and doing everything to not mess up the good thing that former Irish de- fensive coordinator Al Golden left behind when the latter left for the Cincinnati Bengals be- fore last season. Ash inherited a unit that ranked No. 11 nationally in few- est yards allowed and gave up only 15.5 points a game in 2024. "If it's not broke, don't fix it," Ash said upon his introduction in February 2025. "… The way Notre Dame has played defense is the way Notre Dame is going to play defense in the future." Ash's preseason promise rang hollow to start last season. Opponents scored 98 points total through the first three games — the second most allowed in program history — during a 1-2 start in 2025. Yet, even with the slow defensive start and the full-blown panic from Fight- ing Irish fans that followed, head coach Marcus Freeman stood by his first-year coordinator. "It's no one person's fault," Freeman said in defense of Ash. "It's ours." In what may have been the top story- line of last season, Ash's defense made a dramatic turnaround, allowed only 12.6 points per game over its final nine out- ings, and jumped from No. 117 nation- ally in scoring defense after three games to No. 11 by season's end. "We stayed consistent. We didn't change anything," Ash outlined of the seemingly overnight improvement. "There was nothing magical with what we had to do or what we did. We just had to continue working." With roster familiarity in place for Ash to start Year 2 — and with plenty of returning defensive star power — the primary challenge for his second spring season moved from depth chart to sup- port staff. Coaching turnover is an occupa- tional hazard for any top program. And Notre Dame was hit especially hard this offseason after losing terrific position coaches at every level of its defense — linebackers coach Max Bullough, line coach Al Washington and secondary coach Mike Mickens. Freeman, at least to this point in his career, has been masterful with his coaching hires. As two recent examples, Golden built the 11th-best defense in the nation in 2024 before passing the coordinator torch to Ash. Meanwhile, across the line of scrim- mage, second-year Irish offensive coor- dinator Mike Denbrock built a unit last season that scored a program-record 41.8 points a game. But with national championship ex- pectations higher this season than in any since head coach Lou Holtz left the building in 1996, Freeman's hiring decisions, his staff management, and his ability to keep the team's chemistry consistent will be scrutinized more this season than any of his others so far. "The relationship between the coordinators and the position coaches has to be one of syn- ergy," Freeman explained. "They have to understand each other and know when to give ideas and when to just listen to the call or listen to the philosophy. This is what we're doing." It's worth noting, incoming defensive coaches Aaron Henry (secondary), Brian Jean-Mary (linebackers) and Charlie Par- tridge (linemen) bring a wealth of experience and success — and some coaching history with Ash — to their first-year roles at Notre Dame. "These players invested a lot of time to get to know their new coaches," Ash said. "And what we were able to accomplish this spring — the improvement of every player, the units — it's really a credit to the players and what they've done." But change is never seamless. And a faster start to this season is a must, given that Freeman has never enjoyed an undefeated September in any of his first four seasons here, and the playoff exclusion last season after an 0-2 start serves as an urgency reminder. Every offseason brings its own unique set of challenges and circumstances. And whether it be through roster ac- climation this time last year, or his as- sistant staff overall this time around, Ash has already had a lot thrown at him. How quickly, and how well, Notre Dame's new defensive staff finds har- mony will be a story immediately worth watching from a program that has lost six games before October during Free- man's first four seasons. "We need to make sure that we get connected, and we build a relationship with the new coaches really fast," Ash said at the onset of spring ball. "I want these guys to coach you the way that you need to be coached." ✦ Defensive backs coach Aaron Henry, linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary and defensive line coach Charlie Partridge (above) bring experience and a history of success to their first-year roles at Notre Dame. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER Todd D. Burlage has been a writer for Blue & Gold Illustrated since July 2005. He can be reached at tburlage@blueandgold.com. UPON FURTHER REVIEW TODD D. BURLAGE Defensive Staff Changes Bring Fresh Challenges