In 2024, Notre Dame’s kicking game wobbled when grad transfer Mitch Jeter hurt his groin at Stanford in mid-October. Freeman confirmed the groin tightness postgame, and Jeter’s availability/consistency seesawed afterward. By mid-November, Freeman acknowledged Jeter still wasn’t 100 percent.
Reporting around the injury painted the picture of a tricky hip/groin recovery window that bled into performance down the stretch. Fast forward to 2025: starter Noah Burnette has been dealing with a lingering right-hip issue, re-aggravated in practice the week of Boise State, which made him a late scratch—for the second time in three weeks.