It's rivalry week in South Bend, Indiana. The 13th-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-2) take on the 20th-ranked USC Trojans (5-1) in a Top 20 showdown under the lights in Notre Dame Stadium this Saturday. The Irish are coming off of a 29-point victory over the NC State Wolfpack while the Trojans are coming off of a 31-13 win over the Michigan Wolverines. Head coach Marcus Freeman is looking to extend his win streak against USC to three straight games while USC and head coach Lincoln Riley are looking to pick up the Trojans first win in South Bend since 2011. Today, Freeman spoke about Notre Dame's 36-7 victory over NC State and preparing for, what could be, the final regular season game against this arch-rival for the foreseeable future.
You can watch the full press conference here:
Here are some of of the main quotes from this afternoon's press conference:
Freeman On Continuing The Notre Dame vs USC Rivalry
"They know the head coach of this football program desires to continue this rivalry," Freeman explained. "It's not just because I'm at Notre Dame. It's because it's great for college football. I think the rivalry between Notre Dame and USC is a great rivalry and one of the best. I think it's great for college football and for the two institutions to continue this rivalry."
Freeman On The Aggressiveness On 4th Down
"Going for it on fourth-down is something I have conviction in doing in certain situations," Freeman said. "Some of it will be based on our kicker; some of it will be based on the analytics. We have to continue to gain conviction from our offense. That's why we spent some time talking about our short yardage plan and our goal line situation plan because I don't want to lose confidence going for it on fourth-down. That's something I believe in given the right situation. I don't want to pull back, I want to enhance our plan so we have a better percentage of converting."
Freeman On Matchup With Makai Lemon
"I have a lot of confidence in Dallas [Golden]," Freeman said about the matchup with Makai Lemon. "He played really well when you look at the entirety of the game. Obviously, the explosive first touchdown can't happen and he knows it. We have to keep playing with the proper technique but he's getting better. We have a lot of confidence in him if he has to be out there. We also have a lot of confidence in DeVonta Smith. We have to make sure we have a good plan. If that meant moving Leonard Moore there, then we move Leonard Moore there."
"But, you also have a lot of confidence knowing Leonard Moore is at corner and that side of the field is taken care of," Freeman continued. "Do you want to rob Peter to pay Paul? We have to make sure we have a good plan. We can't be insane either, right? We can't just let the same thing happen and say, 'maybe next time.' We have to have a really good plan and think about how they're going to try and attack us too."
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