The good vibes at Notre Dame are fading after another inexplicable home loss, so how many more can we endure?

A week after No. 5 Notre Dame was praised for its toughness and big plays in a crucial season-opening win, the Irish collapsed again at home under coach Marcus Freeman — likely destroying what had looked like a surefire path to the College Football Playoff just a week ago.

Northern Illinois 16, Notre Dame 14.

It wasn't just a hiccup on Saturdayit was the result of an underlying disease that was eroding the bones of the proud Fighting Irish program. Freeman's squad just can't seem to avoid big hits and blows in South Bend. Seemingly capable of competing against the nation's best every week, but more than ready to wade in the mud against a MAC team the next week, the rash is spreading throughout the program.

Upsets happen, but not like this. Not with a MAC team that marched into Notre Dame Stadium, dominated both offensive lines, blocked two field goals and kept getting big third-down conversions. Freeman lost his third game as a two-touchdown favorite at home, the most by a coach in the sport since 2022. It wasn't just bad, it was historic. The Irish entered as 28-point favorites, marking the program's biggest upset against a team since 1995.

Give Thomas Hammock and his Huskies their roses and shamrocks. They didn't need luck to beat the Irish, as he said after the game. Nor did they need blue-chip transfers or a high-profile win over Texas A&M in Week 1 to boost their confidence.

“We have an experienced team, a lot of guys that have been through a lot of different things,” Hammock said with tears in his eyes after the game. “They worked together. We're still college football. I know there's a whole lot of other stuff going on with the NIL transfer portal; we still have a family and they believed in that family and in doing things the right way. I couldn't be more proud of them.”

Not only did Northern Illinois beat Notre Dame, the Huskies were the better team. They hustled the Irish around in the trenches and were much more physical in the defensive backfield, especially when their cornerbacks played press coverage against the Irish's new generation of transfer receivers. Notre Dame's talent wasn't helped by the unpredictable Riley Leonard, the quarterback who seemingly carried the team on his shoulders in a hard-fought win at Texas A&M last week. When things were going badly, he only made things worse with his arm.

No throw was worse than his second interception late in the game, when he had the desired view of a man running free under the free safety. Instead, he chose to drive the ball further downfield, over the unmarked receiver Kris Mitchell and into coverage. The costly interception was returned 33 yards to the middle of the field by Amariyun Knighten with 6:31 left to play.

From there, Northern Illinois' beefy offensive line, one of the most experienced in the sport, took over, pushing the Irish into the second line as they marched down the field to set up Kanon Woodill's game-winning 35-yard field goal with 31 seconds left. Notre Dame got one last chance with a 62-yard field goal, but Cade Haberman blocked it to tie the game and send the Huskies into celebration. It was a perfectly symmetrical end to the afternoon: Both the first and second halves ended with blocked field goals.

“All these guys that have been in our program, been through ups and downs and kept fighting, they're like my kids,” Hammock said, fighting back tears on the field as he spoke to NBC's camera. “I'm glad for the adversity and that I fight through it no matter what the situation is. I just couldn't be prouder.”

He paused, collected himself, and wiped the tears from his eyes. “I'm sorry. I'm sorry.”

Hammock, who was also a running back at Northern Illinois way back when, had no reason to apologize. He built this team and held it together, avoiding the perils of the transfer portal the past two seasons. The 32 seniors on his roster are the sixth-most in the FBS. Eleven of his players have played over 40 games for NIU.

However, Freeman has a lot to apologize for for what he had to do at Notre Dame. No coach should repeat the same mistakes in his third year at the helm of a team as proud and talented as the Fighting Irish.

“Disappointing,” Freeman told reporters after the loss. “It's our job as coaches to make sure these guys are ready. I've always said that performance is a reflection of preparation.”

The defense was fine, which is Freeman's specialty, but Notre Dame was a mess offensively all day. Mike Denbrock, who coached QB Jayden Daniels to a Heisman Trophy last season for a record-breaking LSU offense, couldn't find plays to keep the Irish in rhythm. The worst stretch came in crunch time. After the Irish took a 14-13 lead, their final four drives ended like this:

• Three and out
• Three and out
• Intercept
• Blocked field goal

Notre Dame managed just 286 yards and was outgained by more than 100 yards at home for only the fourth time in the last 15 years. Northern Illinois running back Antario Brown was a monster, managing 225 all-purpose yards and a touchdown.

Leonard, as mentioned, was a disaster, completing 20 of 32 passes for 163 yards and having two interceptions. He was in trouble for most of the afternoon as NIU limited its most dangerous weapon: its legs. Don't worry, every opponent on Notre Dame's schedule will take a close look at defensive coordinator Nick Benedetto's plan, and more talented teams will have a blast with the Irish's offensive line.

For its efforts, Northern Illinois earned the biggest win in MAC history and a fat check for $1.4 million, despite traveling just 160 miles to South Bend. The Huskies will be laughing their heads off on the way to the bank after the MAC entered the afternoon 0-51 against top-five teams. Most of the nation was laughing with them, too, as they earned one of the program's most valuable “Boneyard” wins – their 19th against a power conference team.

Meanwhile, another blemish on Freeman's resume emerged. In his last two or more seasons as coach, he lost his third game despite being favored by 16 or more points. Two years ago, he lost two, including a blowout against Marshall as a 20.5-point favorite. Notre Dame had a 42-0 record against unranked teams from 2017-2021, when Brian Kelly led the program.

Too often, coaches are convinced they can correct mistakes by bringing in top-notch signings and transfers to fill gaps. Sometimes that works. When that doesn't work, they bring in the best playmaker in the game. Sometimes that works too.

But when a team that is the clear favorite keeps losing games, there is only one man to blame.