Notre Dame, coming off a dramatic season-opening victory, will be without one of its top receivers when it faces Northern Illinois on Saturday in South Bend.

Sophomore Jordan Faison, the former walk-on who had a breakout freshman campaign in 2023, suffered an ankle

sprain in the 23-13 victory over Texas A&M when he was pulled down from behind in College Station, Texas.

Last season, Faison had 19 receptions for 322 yards and four touchdowns.

Irish coach Marcus Freeman said Monday that Faison, who is also a

lacrosse player, will miss 1-2 weeks after catching two passes for 12 yards in the 23-13 win over the Aggies on Saturday.

“We’ll see over the next week how he improves and when he’ll be able to come back,” the third-year Irish coach said.

Without Faison, one of the core six receivers the Irish expected to contribute significantly this season, No. 7 Notre

Dame (1-0) will turn to redshirt freshman KK Smith to be a part of the receiver rotation for the first time in his collegiate career.

Smith, a three-star recruit in the 2023 class, did not play in a game as a true freshmen, but the Irish coaches believe he has a bright future.

“He was a guy that we said, ‘Hey, he could possibly get in the game versus A&M,’ and he ended up not getting in the game,” Freeman said. “But we have a lot of confidence in KK.”

Freeman also mentioned true freshman Micah Gilbert, a four-star recruit, as a player who might see some unexpected snaps with Faison out against Northern Illinois (1-0).

Evans on the mend

In addition to Faison, another of Notre Dame’s pass-catchers is also playing at less than 100%. Tight end Mitchell Evans, a preseason All-American who is coming off an ACL tear that cut short his 2023 season after eight games, was only cleared to play against the Aggies a week before the game and was very limited in fall camp.

As a result, he was on a limited snap count against Texas A&M and will have to ramp up as the season progresses. Sophomore Cooper Flanagan, who started in Evans’ place at the end of last season, got extra reps Saturday because of the veteran’s limitations and caught two passes for 25 yards.

“Each week he’ll continue to increase his workload,” Freeman said of Evans, who caught 29 passes for 422 yards and a touchdown last year. “It’s a long season. So, we’ve got to make sure that we give him the best opportunity to succeed throughout the entirety of the season.”

Fired-up Freeman

Freeman was extremely animated in the tunnel prior to the game at Texas A&M’s Kyle Field, shouting at his players, jumping up and down and working the Irish into a frenzy before they ran out on the field.

It was an uncharacteristic pregame show of emotion for Freeman, who usually saves his rawest intensity for when the Irish have a victory in hand. In this case, he said Monday, he was making a calculated play to bolster the confidence of young offensive linemen Anthonie Knapp and Sam Pendleton, who were about to make their first career starts in front of more than 107,000 hostile fans.

“It’s their first time,” the coach said. “They’re freshmen and they’re playing this big environment. It’s almost you go into parent mode and you want to take that pressure off of them. Put it on me. Let’s go man, this is what we talked about. I remember right in that moment saying ‘We’re right here. This is what we showed you in the meetings.’ … I didn’t want them to have any fear.”

“My wife sent me that video and I was probably a little bit out of control,” he added, smiling. “It was intentional (at one point).”

IU’s McCulley ailing

Indiana All-Big Ten receiver Donaven McCulley left the Hoosiers’ season-opening 31-7 victory over Florida International early in the second quarter after taking a big hit, went to the locker room and did not return to the game.

Coach Curt Cignetti did not give a details Monday on the specific injury McCulley suffered or exactly how long he would be out, but suggested the issue will not be a long-term one for the senior.

“I think we’ll have him back soon,” the first-year IU coach said. “Right now I would say it’s more day to day. … We got him in there, and he was playing fast, doing a nice job, and took a hit and was ruled out. He’ll be anxious to get back, and I’ll be anxious to get him back.”

IU plays host Friday to Western Illinois, which lost 54-15 to Northern Illinois on Saturday.