Consider that Notre Dame football coaches are ultimately revealed as successes or failures in their third season. Namely, Ara Parseghian, Dan Devine, Lou Holtz, and Brian Kelly made it. On the other hand, Charlie Weis, Tyronne Willingham, Gerry Faust, and Bob Davie did not. In 2024, Marcus Freeman enters his third season and a fork in the road. When you study the rich history of Notre Dame football, Year 3 is the College Football Betting clue if a coach will succeed or fail. So far, gamblers like Freeman’s chances.
College Football Futures 2024 Notre Dame Fight Irish
| Notre Dame Fighting Irish Odds to Win National Championship | +2500 |
|---|---|
| Notre Dame Fighting Irish Over/Under Win Total: | 10.5 |
2024 Notre Dame Fighting Irish Schedule
- Aug. 31 at Texas A&M
- Sept. 7 vs. NIU
- Sept. 14 at Purdue
- Sept. 21 vs. Miami (OH)
- Sept. 28 vs. Louisville
- Oct. 5 Idle
- Oct. 12 vs. Stanford
- Oct. 19 at Georgia Tech
- Oct. 26 vs. Navy
- Nov. 9 vs. Florida State
- Nov. 16 vs. Virginia
- Nov. 23 Idle
- Nov. 30 at USC
Following records of 9-4 and 10-3, Marcus Freeman begins his third season at Notre Dame. He has his third different starting QB, two of which were transfers. Duke senior transfer Riley Leonard is number one on the depth chart entering spring camp.
2024 Fighting Irish Preview
Following his quarterbacking, Leonard led Duke to a 9-4 season capped off with a Military Bowl win in 2022. However, he was injured most of 2023 and played in only seven games. But he will always be remembered at Duke for engineering its epic 33-17 national TV sportsbook win over Clemson in Week 1. He threw for 175 yards and ran for 98 more, including a touchdown.
Last year, Sam Hartman was the Notre Dame starter after a stellar career at Wake Forest. In 2022, Drew Pyne started after two years on the Notre Dame bench. Subsequently, after his only season as the number-one quarterback, Pyne transferred to Arizona State.
This one-and-done College Football Betting pattern started in Kelly’s final season. At the same time, Freeman was the defensive coordinator. In that 2021 campaign, Jack Coan transferred in from Wisconsin to nearly lead the Fighting Irish to the College Football Playoff.
Consider that Ian Book may go down in history as Notre Dame’s last three-year starter at QB. He won more games than any other Notre Dame QB in history (30). And he was the last man to provide stability at the position.
Freeman has shown steady progress in his two seasons as head coach. Still, it is his ability to acquire talent that has raised expectations in South Bend. Now, Freeman must show that he can consistently lead the Irish to wins on the biggest stage. He must get his program to the College Football Playoff.
Of great concern is a rebuilt offensive line. But the Fighting Irish landed one of the top quarterback transfers in Duke’s Riley Leonard. And they have upgraded as coordinator with the arrival of Mike Denbrock from LSU. Also, the defense should be one of the best in the nation.
Notre Dame went through an offensive overhaul this offseason. Despite the turnover, the Irish will field a deeper and more talented unit in 2024, and new offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock has raised expectations. Quarterback Riley Leonard gives Notre Dame a dynamic run-throw option, assuming his ankle can get healthy and stay healthy. The best-supporting cast of his career will surround Leonard.