SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Before Saturday anyway, Marcus Freeman had never actually seen the viral side of Pat Coogan.
Not that the Notre Dame senior center’s fiery and decidedly family unfriendly pregame speeches he delivers to his fellow Irish offensive linemen — now all over Twitter/X — are meant for public consumption.
“I gotta hear some of these speeches,” the Irish third-year head coach said, seemingly genuinely. after getting hints about their content and reach during a Saturday morning press conference, previewing Thursday night’s College Football Playoff semifinal between 7 seed Notre Dame (13-1) and 6 seed Penn State (13-2).
The two teams clash for the 20th time ever and on the grandest stage and with the highest stakes among those meetings, this one at the Orange Bowl in Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. (7:30 p.m. EST. ESPN).
And it’s the first time they’ll have been in the same stadium since the Nittany Lions handed former Irish QB prodigy Jimmy Clausen a 31-10 shiner in Happy Valley in Clausen’s first collegiate start 17 seasons ago, when the Irish program hit rock bottom with a school-record nine losses.
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The Irish history in Hard Rock is forgettable, too — an 0-2 record by a combined score of 93-22.
But part of the point of Coogan’s spicy sermons is to wash all of that sort of apocalypse reflux away and remind his teammates of who they are now and what they could become.
Through his words and his play.
“I think it's kind of who I am as a person, and my passion for Notre Dame as well,” Coogan said Saturday night after practice indoors at the Irish Athletics Center. “It's easy to get fired up and stuff like that, because of how much I love this university and how much I care for these guys. And that's really, truly what it is.
“It's nothing for [internet] clicks or anything like that, but it's truly just just a moment with the guys. And now it’s 2025, and everyone brings their phones out, but it is what it is.”
And yet, those speeches were part of pregames even after Coogan lost his starting job he held through 13 games of the 2023 season at left offensive guard and seemed to have an edge on, early in preseason camp.
But when starting center, junior Ashton Craig, went down with a season-ending ACL tear Sept. 14 in a 66-7 walloping of Purdue, Coogan went in and became the No. 1 center as Plan B. Fellow senior and displaced 2023 starter Rocco Spindler did the same at right guard in the same game when Billy Schrauth suffered an ankle injury.
And in that same game, on the other side of the ball, starting vyper end Jordan Botelho was lost for the season with a knee injury. The following week Botelho’s backup Boubacar Traore went down, and it became Junior Tuihalamaka’s time to step in and step up.
All three did, without ever considering looking for a trap door out, or giving up on themselves or the team’s big dreams.
“Coogs is an unbelievable leader,” Freeman said. “He is passionate about this place and he's passionate about that position. He's another guy we could use as an example, almost like we did with Junior. Started the year as a backup, was a returning starter. To start the season, we felt like what was best for that game was to have him as a backup.
“And he didn't complain, just worked. Now, he's in the position where he's our starting center and he's just battling and doing a great job and he's leading the group. He's a mature individual that there's some young guys in that offensive line room that he is leading. and he's having a major impact on that room and also our offense.”
And the team’s trajectory as it strives to reach the Jan. 20 CFP National Championship Game in Atlanta after taking down 10 seed Indiana at home, 27-17, on Dec. 20 and 2 seed Georgia in New Orleans this past Thursday, 23-10.
“I think that was a big speaking point when we were down in New Orleans was, this is not like the destination," Coogan said. "This is part of our journey. So, that was big for us to just keep our mindset focused and just know that, yeah, we're here. We can enjoy ourselves.
“It is a bowl game, and you get the stuff within the bowl game, and whatever. But this is also a part of our journey, and this is not our final stop.”
And every one of the stops in the playoff run seems to have an elite defense, including the hypothetical matchups in Atlanta. Indiana’s defense is ranked No. 2 nationally. Georgia’s — No. 30 against the nation’s toughest schedule — has three 2025 NFL first-rounders on its defense.
Ohio State and Texas, on the other side of the CFP bracket, are Nos. 1 and 3, respectively in total D. And the defense Coogan and company practice against, when they go good-on-good, is No. 8. Penn State? The Nittany Lions are No. 6.
Yeah, defense still matters.
“Obviously, really talented defense, similar to our team as well,” Coogan offered. “They play a lot of really good complementary football, and they’ve got talent across the board for sure, really talented front seven.
“They're going to bring the heat for sure as well. So obviously, I think everyone knows, and we know like No. 11, special player.”
That would be All-America junior defensive end Abdul Carter, whose availability for Thursday night’s clash remains shrouded in uncertainty. The 6-3, 252-pounder from Philadelphia suffered an apparent left shoulder/arm injury during Penn State’s 31-14 CFP quarterfinal win over Boise State on Dec. 31.
“It’s going to come down to how he feels and how much practice he’s able to get during the week,” Penn State coach James Franklin told reporters on Saturday. “At this point, I don’t think there’s anything that is stopping him from playing, but it’s going to come down to how is he able to play? We’ll see.”
Carter has amassed 63 tackles — including 21.5 for loss with 11 sacks, eight QB hurries, three pass breakups and two forced fumbles. And he hasn’t done all of it coming off the edge. Penn State, at times, will line him up across from the center.
Coogan’s position.
“Obviously he presents a bunch of unique challenges, just being as talented as he is,” Coogan said. “So, throughout the week, that's definitely got to be a guy that we hone in on because of what he brings to the table and how talented he is. So definitely a really good opportunity for us.”And that’s how Coogan looks at the big, imposing challenges.
Opportunity.
And that’s what drives the content of the speeches, with some colorful language to punctuate it.
“It's easy to get fired up and stuff like that,” he said, “because of how much I love this university and how much I care for these guys.”
Just like he always kind of envisioned cheering for Notre Dame 90 miles away while growing up in Chicago. And now it’s real, and his zigzag path to redemption is real. And how his teammates saw him with the same fire when he wasn’t playing as he is now is inspiring them.
“I think there's hundreds of guys that could show the same thing and show the same love and loyalty to this program,” Coogan said, “but us three [Coogan, Spindler and Tuihalamaka] have been presented with a unique opportunity this year, obviously not starting off the way we wanted to.
“But also just trusting the process and proving that this team and this program is of the utmost importance — more than any other individual position, starting job individual glory, as coach Freeman likes to say.”
And Coogan likes to shout.
“I mean, it's everything,” he said about what kept him engaged during the dark times and the exhilarating ones. “It's the people, it's a culture, it's a brotherhood, it's the guys in the locker room. You know, since the moment I stepped foot in here, it's really been an unbelievable togetherness and an unbelievable bond that I formed within these walls.
“And no matter the people that have left, that have come in, everyone that's at Notre Dame and on his team is really cut from the same cloth. So, it's easy to bond together. It's easy to play for one another.
“It's easy to form long-lasting relationships. So, that goes way beyond the football field, but that's what keeps everyone together and fighting for each other on the football field.”
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