Notre Dame is sitting on a QB conundrum fresh off a National Championship miss. With both CJ Carr and Kenny Minchey vying for the job, Marcus Freeman floated a curveball. “You’re going to look for any way to help your team win.”. Unfortunately, there lies more to it than some critics would like to hear.

While creativity is a double-edged sword, head coach Freeman has decided maybe he wants to take a leaf out of Brian Kelly’s book. During an appearance on the Always College Football With Greg McElroy earlier this month, Freman revealed, “You’re going to look for any way to help your team win. If that means you use two quarterbacks for certain situations, then you’re going to find a way to use two quarterbacks. There might be two quarterbacks on the field at the same time. Who knows? Creativity is so important, and we have some creative football coaches and players here that we’ll come up with the right plan.” As expected, detractors were many.

On Irish Breakdown-Notre Dame Football earlier this week, ND insiders Vince DeDario and Sean Stires dissected Marcus Freeman’s QB plans. First, they played a recording of the HC’s comments on the Greg McElroy show. And as soon as the ‘two QBs on the field’ part was mentioned, DeDario remarked, “I do not see that happening.”

“This isn’t Southern Washington High School. I do not see them both in the backfield or on the field at all at the same time. This isn’t a gimmicky type situation where if CJ Carr wins the battle then Kenny Minchey moves and plays wide receiver. I don’t see that being the case or vice versa, so they’re both quarterbacks, and I don’t see them on the field at the same time,” DeDario added. Meanwhile, his co-host was a bit more diplomatic but still skeptical. 

“I generally don’t think it’s going to happen,” Sean Stires began. “You see him send both, Minchey and Carr, into the huddle at the same time, and then you know, like at the last second one of them lines up in the slot.” The idea is to create last-minute confusion for the opponent DCs about who’s going to be in the game. Still, he added, “I don’t think that they would actually use both of them. I mean odds are it’s not going to happen.”

DeDario didn’t budge from his take. “I’m going to play it safe and say it does not happen,” he said. “I just feel like if they’re getting gimmicky like that then they got more problems than they do solutions.” Marcus Freeman did mention that there will be a named starter. “You’re going to have one guy that’s going to be your quarterback. But I can see us using both quarterbacks to find a way to help us win,” he said. And yeah, Notre Dame is in an ambiguous state.

CJ Carr, a 4-star recruit of the 2024 class and the grandson of Michigan coaching legend Lloyd Carr, enters the season as one of the most touted young quarterbacks in the country. But his experience is limited. And there’s Kenny Minchey, another 4-star recruit from the class of 2023, known for his mobility and athleticism. Maybe this QB dilemma is what made them fall on ESPN’s list. 

ESPN isn’t gracious to Marcus Freeman’s Notre Dame 

As Notre Dame enters 2025, they have one of the most talented rosters in the country. Still, ESPN’s FPI rankings aren’t exactly ringing the bell for the Irish. Ranked seventh nationally, Marcus Freeman’s team has a projected 9.3-2.7 record for the season. And while the Irish have tough matchups to open the year, including games at Miami (FL) and against Texas A&M, no team on their schedule enters the year ranked ahead of them.

Despite the team’s talent, the FPI gives Notre Dame just a 7% chance to go undefeated in the regular season, though that number ranks third-highest among all FBS teams. And then, they secured a 45.6% chance to make the CFP, while their national championship odds stand at 7.3%. The real shocker, however, is their 2.7% chance of winning the national championship, far behind heavyweights like Texas (24.1%) and Georgia (17.9%). 

Notre Dame is brimming with talent but will likely lean on an untested quarterback to steer them through a high-pressure season. The question remains—can Marcus Freeman find his starter before the season kicks off, or will he try to make a two-quarterback system work?