Marcus Freeman is coaching with NFL eyes on him and Notre Dame is not pretending otherwise.
Videos by FanBuzz
Photo credit: Getty Images
Athletic director Pete Bevacqua told ESPN's Adam Rittenberg that Freeman is on the radar of teams at the next level. The Giants job is already out there in betting markets, with Freeman listed as an early favorite.
"Everybody has eyes on Marcus," Bevacqua said. "College has eyes on Marcus, NFL has eyes on Marcus. I bet Hollywood has eyes on Marcus. He is the absolute best coach in the country for Notre Dame, full stop."
Freeman is 39 and already has a national title appearance on his resume. He took over in late 2021 after Brian Kelly left for LSU, then went 43-12 and pushed the Irish to the CFP championship game at the end of the 2024 season. Notre Dame lost that one to Ohio State, Freeman's alma mater.
Before coaching, Freeman bounced through brief NFL stints with the Bears, Bills and Texans before retiring because of a medical condition. He has never coached in the league, but the interest is real. Two head coaching jobs are open right now and more are coming in January.
Bevacqua made it clear Notre Dame plans to keep Freeman right where he is.
"I make sure he knows he will be where he deserves to be," Bevacqua said. "He will be at the top tier of college football coaches when it comes to compensation every year."
We will see how warm the NFL talk gets once the regular season closes and teams start lining up interviews.
