'Trust your doctors,' Notre Dame football coach Marcus Freeman says after Riley Leonard scare

‘Trust your doctors,’ Notre Dame football coach Marcus Freeman says after Riley Leonard scare

Posted by Admin January 12, 2025 Football

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SOUTH BEND — Notre Dame football coach Marcus Freeman expressed faith Sunday in the evaluation process that allowed quarterback Riley Leonard to return for the second half of a 27-24 Orange Bowl win over Penn State.

Leonard, on two occasions in a postgame interview, described his condition as “a little wobbly” in the immediate aftermath of a big hit from 305-pound defensive lineman Dvon J-Thomas. A game official standing nearby stopped play after the back of Leonard’s helmet struck the turf as he fell backward.

In a media conference call, Freeman said there’s “nothing different” in College Football Playoff games from the regular-season protocol Notre Dame uses. The seventh-seeded Irish (14-1) advanced to face No. 8 seed Ohio State (13-2) on Jan. 20 in Atlanta for the national championship.

“We have a medical professional team of athletic trainers and doctors that will do a thorough evaluation of our players when they think they have a concussion,” Freeman said. “The health and safety of our players (is) more important than anything. I want to make sure that’s clear. They would never put a player at risk if they did not think he was physically ready to play in a game.”

Leonard, who completed 9 of 13 passes for 160 yards after his return, said after the Jan. 9 game that he “was very aware of how I felt” as he headed to the sideline for evaluation.

Notre Dame football kicker Mitch Jeter on his mental approach in CFP

Notre Dame football kicker Mitch Jeter on his mental approach vs. Penn State and working with director of sports psychology Joey Ramaeker on visualization

“I just had to prove that through our brain cognition tests,” Leonard said. “I got a little wobbly there for a second, but I knew whenever I was in the tent, I was all good, so there wasn’t (any) worry at all, no.”

Asked a second time in Thursday’s postgame about any “fear factor” regarding his ability to return safely to lead the comeback win, Leonard expounded on the process.

“I think our medical support team, first and foremost, did a really good job,” he said. “Got up a little wobbly, so that’s an indicator they’ve got to bring me to the tent and take me through all the concussion tests.

“We went through all the tests, and they decided I was good to go back, but we definitely took our time and evaluated my numbers from this summer when I took a brain test to when I performed in the tent. (I) passed that.”

Marcus Freeman: ‘You have to trust your doctors’

Since 2009, all NFL games have placed the in-game responsibility for “return to play” decisions in the hands of an “unaffiliated neurotrauma consultant” on each sideline. In addition, a trained spotter watches from the press box for potential brain injuries and can radio down to the field so officials can stop play.

Leonard’s heroics in the CFP semifinal took place at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., the home field of Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagaovailoa, who has suffered multiple reported concussions.

Just one Notre Dame player, offensive lineman Sam Pendleton, has been publicly reported by Freeman this season as having suffered a concussion. Pendleton missed five snaps in the Sept. 28 win over Louisville but returned to start at left guard against Stanford on Oct. 12 following a bye week.

“(Team doctors) made the decision after a thorough evaluation that (Leonard) was OK to return to the game,” Freeman said. “You have to trust your doctors. And there’s times that they say a player is not available to come back into the game, and you have to trust your doctors.

“We have professionals that handle the evaluation, and they felt like Riley was good to return to play.”

Backup quarterback Steve Angeli led the Notre Dame offense for the final nine snaps of the first half, which ended with a 41-yard field goal from Mitch Jeter that narrowed the deficit to 10-3. Angeli said Leonard greeted him with encouraging news as the team returned to the locker room for the 20-minute halftime.

“I came back in and he dapped me up and said, ‘Great job,’ “ Angeli said. “I said, ‘Are you good? How’s everything going?’ He was like, ‘I’m good, I’m ready to roll.’ I was like, ‘All right, let’s go get this thing done.’ “

Sophomore receiver Jaden Greathouse, who caught seven passes for 105 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown to tie the game with 4:38 remaining, said the switch from Leonard to Angeli didn’t cause any concern in the moment.

“I didn’t really see the full play,” Greathouse said. “I didn’t see (Leonard) walk off or anything, but I knew he’d be all right. And I knew Steve was going to come in and do his job and be good for us.”

Leonard, who was sacked three times and scored a touchdown on an 18-carry, 35-yard rushing night, added to his legend after his midgame evaluation.

“He’s such a tough dude,” Greathouse said. “We all love him. He’s going to put his body on the line for us every single game. He shows that on the field. We’re going to do anything for him. We’re just glad that he was able to help us get a win.”

Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and NDInsider.com. Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino.