Chris Ash, the new Notre Dame football defensive coordinator, has been on the staff for a few weeks and has finally spoken about his approach to a defense that was among the finest in the sport under his predecessor, Al Golden.
At his first press conference with the Fighting Irish, Ash made it apparent that he understands the level of talent he is inheriting. “I look at it as if it’s not broken, so don’t fix it,” Ash told the media. “That was exactly the talk Coach (Marcus) Freeman and I had about this circumstance. There has been some excellent defensive football played here. There were norms and responsibility. They have been well-coached. We’re just looking at methods to improve it.”
So, now that Ash is in control of the Notre Dame football team, will he try to adjust Golden’s defense? No. Instead, Ash believes he can simplify things to make the defense even better.
New Notre Dame football defensive coordinator adapting defense to talent level
“We want to play fast,” Ash said. “We want to play violently.” We want to be physical. We want to win the point of assault. That’s what it is about. We want to play energetically and enthusiastically. We’ll coach, instruct, and practice in that manner. “Hopefully, we’ll play that way as well.”
