How do we all look back on the 2025 season?

tirishman505

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Football is a game of inches, and that’s exactly the lesson this season delivered. Setting aside the playoff committee’s filth, ND was undone by a long chain of small, compounding events. Some of it was entirely out of their control. People pointed out weeks ago that keeping ND out would require a multi-game parlay to hit over the final two weeks. It was improbable and it hit.

ACC completely botching its title game, Jagusah getting hurt at the X Games and Devonta Smith spraining his ankle during the national anthem before the A&M game, terrible agme plan against Miami, secondary lost for a few weeks. It just all added up.

The team competes and had a chance, so from a fan's perspective that was good. Love was great too. If this was a high level Kelly-esque team, I really wouldn't give a shit at all. This team was good enough to win it and didn't get a chance, adn that burns a bit.
This exactly my feeling. Even within the first 2 games themselves, despite how awful our defense looked, it was small sequences. I still contend that Miami's TD at the end of the 1st half, which took the parlay of 1) Leonard Moore getting beat on a double move 2) Adon Shuler being hesitant to make a play 3) CJ Daniels making an incredibly catch that he wouldn't duplicate all year, is what decided the game. 97% of the time, that's a pick. It was a classic Carson Beck pick, similar to a number he would through later in the season. And in the world where that is actually a pick, we win that game. A&M, you could pick out 7 or 8 spots that were even less complicated and we win. Football is a harsh mistress.
 

IRISHbluehen

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To me it will always be one of the most bizarre seasons I can remember. The part that really makes me sad is that windows open and close so suddenly. Need everything to go right for a championship run. Felt like this was one of those times where the stars aligned, no dominant teams, Irish getting healthy going into postseason, improving defense, explosive play ability and "franchise" QB, etc. Just have to hope the window stays open for next season.
 

FU BK

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It's the season of "What If?"

Really enjoyed watching this team.
Told my wife that. One of the best damn offenses that Notre Dame has seen in awhile, that had the reigns pulled in on it for the Miami game. What was even more frustrating was watching the offense for A&M game wondering why the hell didnt they just let CJ play. Defense....well, we all know how it started, but damn, by the end of the year one of the best turn arounds that ive ever seen. Being 47, ive seen some great players during my time, and Love ranks right up there with the best. It's been awhile since we have had someone that truly leaves you on the edge of your seat for what he would do next. All I can say is fuck the ACC, SEC, and ESPN...I hope Freeman stews on this all off season as well as the players, and they come out and absolutely smack the living shit out of people next year.
 

BilboBaggins

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Might have been the best team since the end of the Cold War, but we will never know. This team was very, very close to 12-0 and a Heisman winner.

So, yeah I'll probably dwell on the "what if.." for the rest of my life lol this season's "what if" ranks below "what if Urban Meyer took the job in 2005?" but ahead of "what if Clausen and Tate stayed for 2010?"
 

IrishinSyria

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Probably the most fun I’ve had watching a Notre Dame team since the days of Claude Floyd and Tate. Just incredible watching Love, Price, and Williams try to out do each other with absurd touchdown runs.

Really excited to see where Carr goes, though I’ll miss a lot of the receivers who did so much to make him look good. Hope we reload and that Greathouse comes back next year as the player we hoped we’d have this year.

Speaking of Carr’s targets, I cannot believe that Raridon finished the season without a single touchdown catch. He was great everywhere else and seems custom made for the red zone.

There was obviously a lot of turnover in key roles (and especially QB and D coordinator) this year and it cost us. Even with the slow start, we were agonizingly close to making a run at it by the end. If it weren’t for a missed hold, or an opponents circus catch, or an ex Alabama qb’s dropped hold, or Georgia shitting it’s pants against Bama in their first game, or the ACC’s ridiculous tiebreaker, or the committee’s insane departure from the AP polls and its own rankings….this could have been the year.

Finally, this season has somehow made me feel even better about coach than last season’s championship run. For the first time in his tenure, the key pieces came up through the program and not the transfer portal. We’re building something here, and though there will be challenges ahead I’ve never felt more confident that OLD NOTRE DAME WILL WIN OVER ALL.
 

SDIrishFan

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Probably the most fun I’ve had watching a Notre Dame team since the days of Claude Floyd and Tate. Just incredible watching Love, Price, and Williams try to out do each other with absurd touchdown runs.
He was awesome:

giphy-downsized-large.gif
 

NDPhilly

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If Al golden stays we would have pretty definitely been #1 team in the country. With him we beat both A&M and Miami, likely by multiple scores. We beat the rest of the schedule by an avg of 30 anyway after we settled in, but yeah the hype right now would have been insane.
 

Rudy89

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I tend to agree. If this is the "worst" year of a great three-year run, I'll look back on it happily. If next year we don't live up to potential, I'll probably look back on it differently. Check back in 12 months.

But either way, even though we're basically in "CFP or Bust" mode now, I wouldn't consider this year a failure at all. No we didn't make the CFP, but we 100 percent should have, we won 10 straight games in dominant fashion and for most of the season were the half-dozen best teams in the sport. The fact that we didn't make the playoffs is not at all the fault of the players, barely the fault of the coaches, and largely the result of a corrupt system that our athletic director is trying to navigate or fix. Hope he does so this doesn't happen again.

Even though bowls haven’t carried the same weight as they did 10 years ago & with opt outs making them essentially glorified exhibition games in this day & age it truly is playoffs or bust. We can’t have seasons like 05, 06, or 2015where after the regular season & we don’t make the playoffs we can’t think “we didn’t get a chance at the championship but damn if we can beat OSU or this SEC team in the BCS/Ny6 we can say it was a great year.”

I was talking with some co workers (who surprisingly aren’t ND haters) & I said the season feels like tv shows Firefly or Heels. Great shows but they didn’t get a chance to be wrapped up properly so you almost don’t feel like talking about them.
 

Hautian Domer

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Disappointing. Best player in the country and the best player we’ve had in a long time that likely won’t win the Heisman or participate in the playoffs.

Atrocious defense in our two marquee games.

The team gets it together and is playing its best ball late…and truthfully looks like it can win it all. Only to be left out.

Fuck this season.
 

OrlaNDomer

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There's a real chance ND ends up 4-2 against ranked teams this year. After so much crap about us playing nobody, half the schedule could end up ranked in the top 25.

1) Texas A&M (lock)
2) Miami (lock)
3) USC (lock)
4) Pitt (fringe) - 9-4 with bowl win
5) Navy (fringe) - 11-2 with win vs Army and bowl win
6 Boise State (fringe) - 10-4 with bowl win
 

PutuporShutup

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I’ll use freeman’s own favorite phrase - delayed gratification

If in 2026 we dominate and have a great season making final 4, I’ll think these two seasons continued program momentum. If we win it all, then it’s pure delayed gratification

If we don’t make the playoffs next year or even lose first round of them, the two seasons will be a coaching failure..

I expect us to be better than this year and dominate from the get go vs Wisconsin.
 

InKellyWeTrust

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Anger - at the CFP committee and the ESPN propaganda machine

Frustration - at being 2 plays away from undefeated season.

Pride - for this football team not quitting and kicking the shit out of the rest of the schedule during the 10 game win streak

Joy - watching JL and JP run the ball, Carr slinging it, and the defense turning into a monster

But this will always be a "what if" season, because this team was as good as anyone in the CFP field.
 

irishff1014

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For me, it wasn't a failure, but it was a big disappointment. Coming into the season it looked like they only had 2 really tough games on paper, and they lost both of those games. Now, they absolutely got screwed by the CFP Committee, but there is still no excuse to lose to both Miami and A&M, especially with a generational backfield. All they had to do was find a way to win 1 of those games. Chris Ash deserves a lot of blame for the first few weeks, whether it was not knowing his personnel or not making the right defensive calls. It was also a very strange season. I could never really get a feel for this team. It seemed like every single big bounce/call (and non-call) went against them in tight games, and went against the teams they needed to win later in the season.

A lot blame to go around in this game. Schuler does what he is supposed to and hits him just a little bit and he probably fumbles or is aggressive and intercepts the ball.

The offensive game play the first half was trash. They opened it up some in the second and it flourished more. Dembrock has a huge hand in this as well.

And Freeman has to tell Dembrock to get his shit together and cute being cute.
 

irishandy

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There is unfinished business that Notre Dame was screwed out of.

I am proud of the team bouncing back after starting 0-2.

Freeman is the best coach at ND since Holtz.

The revenge tour starts on 9/6/26.

Go Irish ☘️
 

Armyirish47

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I enjoyed it for the following:

1. Feels like the program is cemented in the upper echelon and was a break/corrupt system away from something truly special a year earlier than hope for.

2. Absolutely dumpstered a lot of programs and was nice to quite nice.

3. CJ Carr is the chosen one.

4. We got to experience J Love, can’t be mad about that.

5. Coach Freeman continues to learn and grow which will only further help down the road.

6. On to Wisconsin.
 

ACamp1900

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Never thought it would come to this,… I’m so disgusted with cfb I can’t even stomach watching army/navy,… I tried. Fuck this whole sport until at least spring, boycott the playoffs boys and girls
 

MacIrish75

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After a week to sort of reflect, I’m choosing to look at all of this as confirmation that we are, indeed, all the way back and that the establishment is so absolutely terrified of a viable ND program in this modern landscape of CFB that they chose to collude to keep us out of the playoffs.

I hate that it happened, but really it’s only further confirmation that these conferences and programs are absolutely scared shitless of a strong, independent ND program.
 

Rudy89

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After a week to sort of reflect, I’m choosing to look at all of this as confirmation that we are, indeed, all the way back and that the establishment is so absolutely terrified of a viable ND program in this modern landscape of CFB that they chose to collude to keep us out of the playoffs.

I hate that it happened, but really it’s only further confirmation that these conferences and programs are absolutely scared shitless of a strong, independent ND program.
I hope and pray all you said is true & I will never experience anything like 07-09 or 2016 again. I know that may be asking too much out of life but I’ve just always wanted to be able to say “I’m an ND fan” & it always keep the respect amongst fans of other teams that saying “I’m an Oregon fan” “I’m an Ohio State fan” “I’m an Oklahoma fan” would hold.
 
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