Youth be served: Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman banking on it

After a turbulent and taxing staff search that didn’t stay on script for Marcus Freeman, the rookie Notre Dame head coach on Wednesday finally introduced a roster of 10 new assistants that took him more than 10 weeks to assemble.

And even with 63-year-old Harry Hiestand as his offensive line coach, Freeman and his staff still rank as the youngest for Notre Dame in at least 20 years. 

Strength coaches, graduate assistants, analysts and other support staff members are not part of this analysis. 

With Freeman, 36, included as one of the 11 Irish on-field coaches for 2022, the average age for his first staff is 40.4 years old. 

For perspective — with more to come — Freeman’s staff is younger than any of the 12 coaching units Brian Kelly constructed from 2010-21, or that Lou Holtz built in 11 seasons as Irish head coach from 1986-96. 

And when asked about the benefits of having one of the youngest coaching staffs in the modern era of Notre Dame football, and among the top college football programs, Freeman said it’s all about connectivity. 

“I think it is the ability to be able to relate to the young people; the ability to relate to the young people in high school, recruiting is so important,” Freeman explained. “Ultimately, it’s about bringing in the best players you can, in the country, so there is a relatability between sometimes your generation, and the young prospects you’re recruiting.”

After a coaching purge following a 4-8 season in 2016, Kelly fielded his youngest Notre Dame staff in 2017 — a group that averaged 42.1 years in age and included six new on-field assistants, all aged 44 years or younger. 

Kelly’s youthful assistant list in 2017 included three new coaches aged 35 years or younger — quarterbacks coach Tommy Rees, who was 26 at the time, offensive coordinator Chip Long (34) and linebackers coach Clark Lea (35). 

The youngest staff Holtz fielded averaged 41.7 years of age and came in 1991.

That 10-man group — which includes the then 54-year-old Holtz — featured outside linebackers coach Jay Hayes (29), defensive backs coach Ron Cooper (29) and wide receivers coach Skip Holtz (27). 

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The new norm?

And while a coaching youth movement at Notre Dame is rare, hiring young guns before the old guard is becoming more the norm at FBS schools around the country, especially at second-tier programs. 

A story from USA TODAY Sports before the 2020 season evaluated the average age of FBS football coaching staffs, and the research results were interesting.

*The average coaching age in 2020 among Group of Five schools — which tend to hire younger, up-and-coming coaches — was 40.6 years old. 

*While among the Power Five conference schools that year — many of which feature veteran head coaches — the average staff age climbs to 44.2 years old. 

Again, Notre Dame’s average assistant age in 2022 is 40.4 years old, while the national FBS average is 42.5.

The USA TODAY Sports story also explained how 89 percent of Group of Five staffs aged 45 years or younger, while 41 percent of Power Five programs featured staff members that averaged at least 46 years in age. 

Interestingly, with an average age of 37.2 years, Boston College in 2022 — a Notre Dame opponent — will field the youngest on-field staff among all Power Five programs. 

Also of note, the 2021 Oklahoma State staff the beat Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl — under 54-year-old head coach Mike Gundy — averaged 48.9 years in age, and included no assistant under age 40. 

And while administrators at second-tier FBS schools are showing an increasing willingness to hire young coaches, the common criteria among top programs is experience and success. 

Heading into the 2022 season, Alabama’s average coaching age is 44.9 years old, Ohio State’s is 46.5 and Clemson’s is 42.9.

That 2.5-year difference between Clemson’s 42.9 average age and Notre Dame’s 40.4 seems negligible, but it equates to nearly a 25-year coaching experience difference between the two staffs. 

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Age matters

A 25-year college coaching veteran, 54-year-old Wake Forest chief Dave Clawson logically explained how the growing number of youthful FBS head coaching hires will continue to pull down overall average staff ages. 

“When you get your first head coaching job, you’re going to hire people that you know, that you worked with, that are peers,” Clawson said. “Just by nature, those are going to be young people, because you’re younger.” 

Trends and demographics aside, Freeman explained that during his staff search, age was only a number, and never a relevant consideration. 

“To me,” he said, “experience and the ability to teach doesn’t have an age on it. And the ability to recruit doesn’t have an age on it.”

2022 Irish staff ages

HC: Marcus Freeman (36)

OC/QB: Tommy Rees (29)

DC/LB: Al Golden (52)

DL: Al Washington (37)

CB: Mike Mickens (34)

S: Chris O’Leary (30)

OL: Harry Hiestand (63)

RB: Deland McCullough (49)

WR: Chansi Stuckey (38)

TE: Gerard Parker (41)

ST: Brian Mason (35)

For comparison

Following is graphical context to how Freeman’s youthful coaching staff compares in age to some notable others, past and present.

2022: Marcus Freeman (Notre Dame) 40.4 years

1991: Lou Holtz (his youngest ND staff) 41.7

2022: Kirby Smart (Georgia) 41.8

2017: Brian Kelly (his youngest ND staff) 42.1

2022: Dabo Swinney (Clemson) 42.9

2022: Nick Saban (Alabama) 44.9

2022: Brian Kelly (his first LSU staff) 45.5

2022: Ryan Day (Ohio State) 46.5