Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547169
28 OCT. 31, 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED HEAD COACH MARCUS FREEMAN … On how Leonard Moore's concussion affected his week of practice: "He practiced enough that we felt he was able to go out there and play. Again, there's no excuse. If some- body catches the ball, you don't blame it on a lack of practice on Tuesday. On that rep, we didn't get it done. Is it a technique issue? Is it an execution issue? "Those are things that we've got to go and evaluate the film and come up with the right answer. And once you come up with the answer, you have a process to fix it. But if you're look- ing for us to blame [that for] him not being full-go because he didn't play last week, that's an excuse." On failing to score touchdowns after gaining posses- sion in BYU territory: "They were stopping the run and putting us in some difficult passing situations, third and long. We weren't able to convert. They were playing well. I'm more worried about us and what we've got to do in those situations. … Had to settle for field goals. Again, you get the ball on the plus-41 and the plus-24, you've got to score touchdowns in the red zone. We weren't able to do that. We've got to have a better plan in that situation." On the crowd in Provo, Utah: "They did a good job. I don't know if we had any false starts, maybe one. We prepared for a loud atmosphere. They were loud, but our preparation should really make sure, no matter how loud it gets, that it doesn't affect our operation. "And so, I thought our guys did a really good job of not let- ting it affect our routine and our operation, but it was loud and it was what we expected." SENIOR LINEBACKER DRAYK BOWEN … On freshman safety Joey O'Brien getting beaten for the eventual game-winning touchdown: "I've been there be- fore. He's just gotta pick his head up. That wasn't the play that lost us the game. It was just, they just happened to score there. Good throw, good catch. Just, you know, keep his head up. "He's young. He's gotta keep working. But that wasn't the play, or that wasn't the touchdown that lost us this game. There were many, many plays before that that we could've played a lot better on. So, for him, just keeping his head up and making sure he's okay." On senior defensive end Boubacar Traore's targeting penalty: "It's something that happens. You don't want it to happen, but that's why you practice two, three guys at a spot. You trust the next guy coming in just as much as Boubacar, because he's done the work. Boub's helped all those dudes get ready. He was over on the sidelines helping. "It's something you don't want to happen, kind of like Adon [Shuler] last year [against Texas A&M], where a dude goes out of the game for targeting. But the way he handled it and the way he made sure that those dudes were ready to go on the field, seeing what they were supposed to see, that's what you want from someone like Boub." On BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier: "He played really well. He was able to ID coverage really well, keep us off-bal- ance with the run game. I think that was the biggest thing. We didn't necessarily shut him down like we needed to in the first half, and second half we kind of took his legs away and made him throw the ball, and he made some good throws. "And so, he's a very good quarterback. It was kind of our plan to make him have to throw the ball, and we felt like that's where we had the advantage at. He made some really good plays, and you gotta give it to him. He did what he needed to do for the offense." JUNIOR QUARTERBACK CJ CARR … On how Notre Dame moves forward after the loss to BYU: "Just gotta go back to work. Put the work in, do what we do. I think we practiced well all week, and gotta continue to string those together through the bye week and then to who- ever we got next." FROM THE LOCKER ROOM Senior linebacker Drayk Bowen said of BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier, "He made some really good plays, and you gotta give it to him. He did what he needed to do for the offense." PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER