SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Marcus Freeman staged an internal debate on the flight home from Green Bay as Sunday night turned into Monday morning. When he got into the office after Notre Dame’s 41-13 win over Wisconsin, he still had not settled on how he wanted the Irish to work this week heading toward Rice 3:30 p.m., NBC).Should No. 3 Notre Dame stick to its routine, which Freeman likes to call “Bloody Tuesday” and put the pads on like it’s training camp all over again? Or should the Irish back off considering Freeman’s weird run of home openers the past four years? He’s won just one of them, a blowout of Football Championship Subdivision program Tennessee State. Last year’s defeat to Texas A&M came down to a dysfunctional defense. Losses to Marshall and Northern Illinois were more offensive misconduct.Freeman wanted to hit in practice. He just needed to make sure his roster was ready for it.“Ultimately, it was (Tuesday) morning when I saw the guys. I got some feedback, some data, right? But they were ready. They’re ready to practice,” Freeman said. “We had meetings, and I’m like, guys, this feels like a Bloody Tuesday. They’re not worn out. They’re ready to go, and they’re ready for this next opponent.”It’s hard to imagine Notre Dame not being ready for Rice, regardless of the practice routine. The Owls are 44.5-point underdogs. Then again, it was hard to imagine a team good enough to play for the national championship losing to a mid-level MAC program as a three-touchdown favorite. The scars of those September losses have never really healed for Freeman. That means the roster will get a brief history lesson this week.Freeman doesn’t let losses go, especially Northern Illinois, when Notre Dame didn’t hit in the game as much as it pushed and prodded. The Irish didn’t match the physicality of the week prior at Texas A&M and it showed, which helped create one of the season’s most inexplicable results. And that’s why the Irish kept hitting this week in practice, so they’d remember how to hit on Saturday.“From past experiences, we know we need that,” guard Anthonie Knapp said. “That’s something we can’t miss on. You can’t walk out here with no pads and expect to get better.”Notre Dame should be able to pick its score on Saturday in the home opener, but there’s still plenty to get sorted as the Irish begin a five-game stretch where they will be heavy favorites. Here are three questions and one prediction as Notre Dame looks to take another step forward:Odds are the Notre Dame leprechaun will be celebrating again this weekend. (John Fisher / Getty Images)Did the Irish figure out their run game?Nolan James didn’t expect to feel rushed during the first serious action of the running back’s college career. But he was. So the sophomore tried to remind himself of a coaching point from Ja’Juan Seider, even if he spaced it for most of the first half against Wisconsin.