The Marcus Freeman era in Notre Dame didn’t get off to a great start.
With Saturday’s stunning 26-21 loss to Marshall, Freeman has now lost his first three games as head coach of Fighting Ireland. That makes him the first coach in school history to ever start their careers with three consecutive losses.
The first two losses are understandable, and even acceptable.
In Freeman’s first game, Notre Dame narrowly lost the Fiesta Bowl 37-35 to Oklahoma State. Not only was Freeman in a difficult position to replace Brian Kelly, but Oklahoma State were also in the top 10. It was a tight match between two strong teams. Sometimes you lose.
Last week, Notre-Dame Cathedral opened the 2022 season on the road to one of the best teams in the nation in Ohio State, a tough game for any team, and lost 21- ten. Not a great performance, but again, not a match many expected Notre Dame to win.
That Saturday’s loss was a brutal one.
Notre Dame went into the game at home, as a top 10 team, and got 20 favorites and couldn’t do anything offensive.
Marshall took the lead with less than six minutes of play in the fourth half when Devin Miller hit the ball for three yards.
Just a few innings later, Steven Gilmore hit a knockout with a six-point pick at 37 yards to give Marshall an 11-point lead.
