Notre Dame Head Coach Marcus Freeman recently discussed the importance of staying independent in college football, rivalries, and how he managed to follow in the footsteps of Brian Kelly.
Notre Dame last won a title in 1988, but it has made great strides towards adding a more recent championship to its record in recent years. This includes a College Football Playoff run that saw it to the national championship last season, losing to eventual champion Ohio State.
Marcus Freeman Gets Candid About Filling Brian Kelly’s Shoes At Notre Dame
On a recent episode of Joel Klatt’s “Big Noon Conversations,” the Fox Sports analyst sat down with the Notre Dame head coach, Marcus Freeman, in the Fighting Irish’s locker room and discussed various topics.
“This is my singular favorite spot in college football, the locker room at Notre Dame Stadium,” the coach began. Freeman is entering his fourth season at Notre Dame, a year removed from making it to the national title game.
During this interview, the current Fighting Irish Head Coach delved into the early years of his career at Notre Dame Stadium and the challenges of following in the footsteps of one of the Fighting Irish’s greatest coaches, LSU’s Brian Kelly, who shocked the college football world by leaving Notre Dame for LSU in November 2021.
His completely abrupt departure came only weeks after he became Notre Dame’s all-time wins leader, spending 12 years at the school.
“We were in a really good position when I took over. What Coach Kelly had done for this program had been tremendous,” Freeman explained, detailing what it took to elevate his side following Kelly’s departure.
“How do you elevate from that point we were at? For me, taking a dip, we lost the first game I coached, which was the bowl game, then we lost my second game, Ohio State, and then the third, you had to regress to learn what it takes to progress.”
Although the Notre Dame head coach lost his first two games during his debut season, he ultimately rallied to finish the season with an 8-2 record, going 4-2 against ranked opponents; however, when it comes to the playoffs, Freeman has seen much more success.
While Coach Kelly was 1-7 against AP top-five teams in those 12 seasons at Notre Dame, his successor, Freeman, was 3-2 against top-five teams, including two wins in the College Football Playoff in three seasons, and a run to a National Championship game.
Since he took over from the current LSU Head Coach, Freeman has transformed both the culture and talent at Notre Dame, turning them into a consistent contender that constantly pushes out top talent as he hunts down the ultimate goal, a National Championship.
The Irish will keep climbing towards this goal when they kick off their 2025 season on August 31 against Miami. They also have scheduled dates with Texas A&M, Purdue, Arkansas, Boise State, NC State, USC, and Pittsburgh.
