For the second time in four years, Notre Dame finds itself sitting at 0–2 despite starting the year inside the top 10. Two narrow defeats to ranked opponents have left Marcus Freeman’s team searching for answers, and now the Irish head into a Week four showdown with Purdue that feels less like a mid-September tuneup and more like a season-defining gut check.
Freeman has been clear about what went wrong in Miami and against Texas A&M, and he hasn’t sugarcoated the stakes. Notre Dame has been close, but not close enough. “We’re four points away from being, five points away from being 2–0,” Freeman said on Monday. “So, are we close? Yeah, but we’re not close enough.”
That distinction has become the theme of Notre Dame’s early season: a talented roster that hasn’t been consistent enough when it matters most.
Close, But Not Close Enough
The Irish can point to a handful of plays in both losses that, if executed properly, would have changed the outcome. A third down stop in Miami, a red zone finish against Texas A&M, or eliminating one of the six explosive plays that broke the defense on Saturday night. But Freeman was quick to dismiss moral victories.
“When two really good teams play each other, it’s who can be most consistent,” Freeman said. “And I can give you one play here, one play there, one play that would change the outcome of the game. Well, that’s a sign of not being consistent because on that play, you didn’t get your job done.”
The challenge now is turning those close calls into wins before the season slips away.
Consistency as the Central Theme
If there’s one word that has defined Freeman’s message this week, it’s “consistency.” He repeated it throughout his opening remarks and in nearly every answer. “Consistency, I believe, is what wins or loses games when you have two good opponents competing against each other,” he said.
Freeman pointed to three areas where Notre Dame must improve: finishing drives on offense, making every rep count on special teams, and limiting explosive plays on defense. Against A&M, the Aggies racked up more than 200 yards on just six plays — a backbreaking stat that undercut otherwise solid stretches of defensive football.
The head coach didn’t shy away from where the responsibility lies. “It falls on us as coaches to make sure that our guys can execute what we’re asking them to execute on a consistent basis,” Freeman said.
Purdue Presents the Next Test
Notre Dame’s response will come quickly against Purdue on Saturday night. Freeman went out of his way to praise Barry Odom’s team, noting their relentless style and belief in their head coach. “This team plays hard, and you can watch the film, you can watch even some of the schematic things that happened when they were at UNLV,” Freeman said. “Barry Odom gets his players to play extremely hard, confident, and it’s a belief in their head coach, and it’s something they’ve instilled in their culture.”
Purdue isn’t ranked, but the Boilermakers have enough talent and confidence to make life difficult if Notre Dame continues to play uneven football. For a team desperate to avoid an 0–3 start, the Irish can’t afford another flat quarter or another sequence of missed opportunities.
Urgency Without Panic
Freeman’s message to his players hasn’t been about panic or hitting the reset button. Instead, he has focused on the importance of winning the moment in front of them. “We got one game that’s guaranteed right in front of us, and that’s Purdue. But we got one day that we have, and that’s right now,” he said. “And so how do we maximize this day, this moment, these meetings, this walkthrough? How do we make the most because that’s going to get us to where we want to go and really where we want to be for Saturday?”
That mindset will be tested in Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday. Purdue is treating this matchup as their own statement game, and Notre Dame is facing an opponent fully aware of the Irish’s 0–2 start.
Gut Check Time
Freeman has made it clear that Notre Dame’s problems are not about talent. The roster has weapons at receiver, a young quarterback in CJ Carr who has shown flashes of greatness, and a defense that was touted as one of the program’s best units in August. But execution has lagged, and the longer the Irish go without showing progress, the more those preseason expectations will feel hollow.
“This is the time that leadership shows,” Freeman said. “If you’re a leader, you’re built for this moment. You know it’s not always great. And leadership really reveals itself in difficult times.”
Notre Dame has already used up its margin for error in September. The Irish aren’t totally out of the playoff picture — but they’re out of mulligans. The Purdue game now looms as the pivot point: a chance to show the ability to bounce back, steady the season, and prove that consistency can be built through adversity.
Lose, and the narrative changes entirely. The Irish will be staring at a lost September and the possibility of a season that derails before it ever really began. Win, and they regain momentum heading into the rest of the schedule.
Saturday isn’t just about beating Purdue. It’s about proving this team can take a punch, get off the mat, and deliver a response worthy of the Notre Dame standard. The Irish did it last year at Purdue following the embarrassing loss to NIU. Can they do it again?
