For decades, South Bend has built a reputation as the home of one of the greatest football programs in the country: Notre Dame. A place that set the standard for football across the country showed that success isn’t just something a program earns, but is tried and tested. For head coaches that came before Marcus Freeman, many found success by this mantra, earning national championship titles or undefeated regular seasons; although Freeman hasn’t found that success, he’s found something greater: resilience.
It’s no secret the Fighting Irish has found itself dominating headlines year-round. From taking close losses in their first two games, not making the College Football Playoff, rumors that Freeman would leave for an NFL team (or even worse, Penn State) and hateful comments about their absence from a conference, Notre Dame has seen it all.
Last season was one that fans will want to forget; however, it only solidified Freeman’s reputation as a fearless and adaptable leader. After the Irish fell short in the National Championships against Ohio State the year prior, Freeman entered his fourth year ready to navigate the team to the same position they had been in, this time led by redshirt freshman quarterback C.J. Carr. Notre Dame took a 27-24 loss at Miami before returning home and suffering a 41-40 defeat against Texas A&M.
Trying to pick up the broken pieces of both the student body and their defensive line, not to mention handle the Chris Ash slander that seemed consistent in the media, the Irish stumbled through the mid-season stretch with bad kicking and inconsistent play calls not providing the style points that Notre Dame would need to make the Playoff. Fans who hung up their green and gold hats after the first two games only felt worse when the Miami Hurricanes were called for the CFP, crushing Irish dreams and ultimately causing Freeman to retract his team from a bowl game. All told, his fourth year ended in a drama no one could have predicted.
Speculations, coaching changes and unwanted conference debates defined the off-season. After the Nittany Lions parted with now-Virginia Tech head coach James Franklin, there were rumors Freeman would head to State College and wear a different color blue on the weekends. Those rumors were quickly shut down, but not before Freeman was also credited with being on the list to take over the New York Giants. Freeman was insistent he would not be trading his Saturdays for Sundays and got back to work with his Irish team.
Heading into his fifth season with Notre Dame, Freeman has everything to lose, especially since the debates of whether or not the Irish need to join a conference have never been louder. Following its recent open scrimmage, it is clear the team’s focus has been to tune out the headlines and work with the reality that this will be a team with lofty expectations. With the scrimmage behind him, Freeman noted how “we have to evaluate our coaching. We have to evaluate the way our players have received our coaching and prepared.”
In this season of growth across depth and coaching, the Irish are adapting well and rebuilding their identity one play at a time, but with the Blue-Gold Game this weekend and summer fast approaching, one question remains: Can Freeman transform two seasons of heartbreak into a championship which would immortalize the head coach among the all-time greats? The grace period is over, and the standard is ready to be set. Watch out for Marcus Freeman in his fifth season.
