Notre Dame expected to name Marcus Freeman as head coach

Marcus Freeman was seen as a strong internal candidate to replace Brian Kelly at Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish defensive coordinator is now expected to move up to the top job after Kelly left for LSU, sources told On3’s Matt Zenitz Wednesday night.

Marcus Freeman is expected to be the next head coach at Notre Dame, sources tell @On3sports https://t.co/k5bN5NhJoE

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) December 2, 2021

Freeman is in his first season as Notre Dame defensive coordinator after four years at Cincinnati in the same role. He played linebacker for Ohio State from 2004-08 before the Chicago Bears drafted him in the 2009 NFL Draft.

After bouncing around practice squads that season, Freeman jumped into college coaching as a graduate assistant at Ohio State in 2010. He then spent time at Kent State before moving on to Purdue as linebackers coach and, eventually, co-defensive coordinator from 2013-16. That’s when he wound up at Cincinnati.

Kelly left Notre Dame earlier this week for LSU after 12 years in charge in South Bend. He recently became the Fighting Irish’s winningest coach in program history with his 106th win on Sept. 25. Overall, he amassed a 113-40 record with Notre Dame.

Notre Dame is 11-1 this season and in the mix for a potential College Football Playoff appearance. Freeman’s defense is the 11th best in the country, holding teams to 18.3 points per game this season.

Marcus Freeman was reportedly a top candidate to replace Brian Kelly

With the news breaking that Brian Kelly will leave Notre Dame for LSU, the Fighting Irish are wasting little time in finding his replacement. According to Notre Dame beat writer Pete Sampson, sources around the program believe that there will be some momentum among the decision-makers at the university to elevate Marcus Freeman. And if he were to take over, he would be a first-time head coach, which is a rarity at Notre Dame.

Freeman is Notre Dame’s defensive coordinator. He’s a graduate of Ohio State University, where he played linebacker for the Buckeyes. After being drafted in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears, Freeman failed to make an NFL roster. He then elected to return to Ohio State the following year and began his coaching career. From 2011 to now, Freeman has been primarily a linebackers coach. But with Notre Dame and in his previous stop at Cincinnati, he has been the defensive coordinator as well.

But the Fighting Irish would likely have to make a decision on him soon. It is very possible that he could join Brian Kelly in Baton Rouge, LA as the Tiger’s defensive coordinator. The year before, Freeman was reportedly on his way to LSU before Kelly swooped in and convinced him to join him in South Bend.