There's a reason Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman is beloved by many, and a recent interaction with a reporter is just one reason why.
During a Monday press conference, Freeman had a chance to have some fun with reporter Tim O'Malley of Irish Illustrated, who is the coach of Freeman's son's flag football team. Freeman grilled him, asking him questions about his own coaching decisions and other coaching mishaps.
Here's Marcus Freeman turning the tables on Irish Illustrated's @timomalleyND during Monday's press conference. O'Malley coaches Freeman's son's flag football team and Freeman had a couple hard hitting questions on some coaching decisions/mishaps. pic.twitter.com/jIKtJkuQKQ
— ND Football Discord (@NDF_Discord) October 23, 2023
Before firing away, Freeman asked, "My turn?" after answering a question from O'Malley.
"Two things," Freeman starts off.
"Second/third grade championship game, k? Two trips to the red zone, zero points. One play was a reverse pass that was intercepted in the red zone. You were the offensive coordinator there? Thoughts on the red zone play-calling?" Freeman asked while smirking.
"Uh, you know, they were attacking the run so much," O'Malley started. "With Nico and Nolan, I thought we could drop one over their head, but maybe the elements, the mud, the game wasn't great for them, so."
Freeman responded, "OK, that's good. Last question."
"There was a Nico Freeman in that same game that had a long run that was negated by only having one flag on. Whose responsibility is it to make sure the young man has two flags on?"
O'Malley shifted the blame of this very serious question: "I think it would be the guy in the huddle, which would be me, but you might be able to blame Coach Stanley on the sideline ...."
Freeman interrupted him, "Oh! You're passing blame! Come on, Tim! You gotta own it now."
This was a fun exchange in a light-hearted manner between the Fighting Irish's head coach and a reporter who so happens to coach his son Nico's team.
We're not sure what comes next for O'Malley and the flag football team, but we do know the Fighting Irish have a game to prepare for this weekend, hosting Pittsburgh at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday in Week 9 of the football season.
