When former Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly opted to leave South Bend for the LSU Tigers following the 2021 college football season, there was an interesting debate in the Fighting Irish fanbase about who the next head coach should be. There was a heavy push for Marcus Freeman, who has become one of the best coaches in the country in a short amount of time. 

That substantial support for Freeman has proven to pay off big time. Notre Dame has a rising star in the coaching business; a tremendous spokesperson for the program, an outstanding recruiter, and things only seem to be getting better. There was a lot of patience needed, given it was his first head coaching job, but Freeman has proven to be a risk well worth taking. 

While he was an exciting option during that time, Freeman was anything but a unanimous decision from the Irish fans. There was a large contingent very intrigued by former Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell, citing his head-coaching experience and ability to build a stable program. Fickell may have even been the majority choice at the time if Notre Dame fans were surveyed. 

The Luke Fickell candidacy

On paper, there was a lot to like about Fickell. After serving as an assistant coach and a brief stint as an interim head coach for Ohio State, the Bearcats made the push for Fickell before the 2017 season.

In six years with Cincinnati, Fickell led the squad to a 57-18 record, including a .760 winning percentage. The team also had four seasons with double-digit victories, three bowl wins, and an appearance in the College Football Playoffs during the 2021 season. 

Fickell didn’t end up making the jump that offseason when the Irish hired Freeman. There was extensive research on Fickell by the program during that hiring cycle, but it quickly became apparent that Freeman was the guy for the job. 

With Notre Dame not on the table for Fickell, there wasn’t a program that intrigued him enough to make the jump. Fickell, instead, decided to be patient and spend another season in Cincinnati. Following the 2022 season, the Wisconsin Badgers eventually became the ideal choice. It has been an interesting tenure thus far. 

A program with a deep history of excellence, most expected the Fickell era in Madison to be a successful one. Now in year four with the program, things are not in a good place. Fickell holds a 15-17 overall record and is positioned to have two straight losing seasons. There has been a lot of hot-seat talk already around Fickell, and that isn’t going to stop with the Badgers losing 37-0 to Iowa on Saturday. 

When you compared Freeman to Fickell, the former was viewed as the high upside coach with a troubling floor, while the latter was viewed as the much safer option. With Freeman recruiting and retaining talent at such a high level, he has raised the floor for the Irish substantially. We have seen fewer and fewer head-scratching, uneven decisions from Freeman as he has gained more experience, as evidenced by his 37-12 record with the Irish. 

While some may find it unfair to compare Fickell’s situation to Notre Dame’s potential fortunes, it isn’t as if he was tasked with turning around a horrible program. The luster has worn off Fickell as a coach, and there isn’t a member of the Irish fanbase who will continue to second-guess the decision to go with Freeman. Seeing Fickell’s struggles since his days with the Bearcats has only verified that thought. 

Notre Dame should feel lucky to have Coach Freeman. He has proven to be one of the rising stars in the college football coaching ranks. Freeman has also gone from a perceived risk to the best option for the future of the Fighting Irish program. 

Notre Dame Fighting Irish News

Predicting the next three Notre Dame commitments for what could be an elite 2027 recruiting class in the end for the Irish

Notre Dame Football is off to a strong start in the 2027 recruiting class. That should continue moving forward.

Ryan Roberts