Notre Dame needs to get back on track this weekend when they host the Purdue Boilermakers inside of Notre Dame Stadium. The Irish have started out their season 0-2 for the second time in head coach Marcus Freeman’s tenure and they will need a quick turnaround this Saturday if they want to right the ship. Thankfully, they have a quarterback under center they believe can help lead that charge.
Redshirt freshman CJ Carr has been one of the few bright spots through Notre Dame’s first two games. That’s not to say he’s without fault; Carr will have some things to clean up as the season progresses, but his 221 passing yard, three touchdown performance against Miami to open the season and 293 passing yard, one touchdown performance in a gut wrenching 41-40 home loss To Texas A&M turned some heads.
Carr's quarterback coach Gino Guidugli has been impressed with his young quarterback through two games this season. Not many quarterbacks start their careers on the road against a rival in a Top 10 matchup followed by a Top 20 showdown under the lights at home, but Carr's performance made a strong impression on Guidugli.
"When you get thrown into the fire against two opponents like that, you don't know what you're getting out of a freshman quarterback when you put him out there for the first time," Guidugli said. "To respond and play with as much poise as he does, I think he's got a chance to be a really good one. I think he's going to continue to get better and offensively we'll be better for it.”
The Saline, Michigan native has emerged as one of the strongest leaders on the team despite his age. Guidugli knows he has a more than capable leader under center.
"It's just his work ethic and his poise," Guidugli explained when asked what makes Carr such a good leader. "Guys see how hard he works. Guys see the preparation that he puts in. I think each game that we have he'll grow as a vocal leader; he's not scared. He has an ability to build relationships and then be able to confront people when they're wrong and demand that they do right."
Tight end Eli Raridon, one of Carr's go-to targets in the offense, echoed the same sentiment about his quarterback's ability to lead.
“I feel like he was, in both games, super prepared, super calm and composed," Raridon stated. "You can just tell, with him, he seems more confident. He's as good with his reads than any quarterback I've played with. He's got a really bright future and he's such a good leader for how young he is."
Carr has made some mistakes in his first two starts, something that was to be expected from a redshirt freshman, but his ability to lead consecutive scoring drives against Miami after an interception put his resiliency on full display.
"He puts that aside," Raridon said when asked about Carr's ability to rebound. "You can tell by the way he plays after a mistake. When you make a mistake, you can't dwell on it, you have to move on, and that's what he does. I think he does that really well."
At the end of the day, Carr is the ideal competitor you want starting at quarterback for your program. Freeman has stated that since he was named the starting quarterback prior to week one. Wide receiver Malachi Fields has also seen Carr's competitive side on the field and has gravitated towards it.
"He's a competitor in all that he does," Fields answered when asked what makes Carr a good quarterback. "He wants to win and he wants to beat the defense, whoever it is. When we come out to practice, he's smiling. When we are going to 7-on-7 or one-on-one, he's talking his stuff because he is just a competitor. He is just a dude who wants to compete and that's what I love.”
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