Marcus Freeman’s name continues to gain more steam as a strong candidate for multiple college football head coaching openings
is Notre Dame in danger of losing HC Marcus Freeman to another program next offseason?
It is becoming a yearly tradition for Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman to be discussed with various college football head coaching positions available. This time around conversation centers around both the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Florida Gators, who each dismissed James Franklin and Billy Napier, respectively. On the early short lists for each program, various media members have mentioned Coach Freeman, and it is understandable why.
Freeman is a very easy sell as a head coaching candidate on the college level. He is a younger head coach who excels on the side of recruiting, attracting a ton of talent from both the high school ranks and the Transfer Portal when needed. In just three and a half years as the head coach in South Bend, Freeman has continued to get better and better. The 39-year old currently holds a 38-12 overall record as a head coach, including a National Championship Game appearance against Ohio State last season.
In a very short amount of time, Freeman has created energy around South Bend that we haven’t seen in quite some time. Can you blame any program that desires a young head coach who has grown tremendously in a short amount of time, is a great recruiter, leader, and is only going to get better?
I certainly can’t.
On a recent edition of the Dan Le Batard Show with Stogotz, Freeman was the main topic of conversation. Le Betard seems to believe that there is legitimate interest in Freeman from both Florida and Penn State, and the interest is being reciprocated.
“The leading contender at both these schools is Marcus Freeman from Notre Dame,” Le Betard said. “There was some back channeling last year. Seems like he loves it there. He wants to go to the pros.
“It’s like 1A-1B Marcus, Freeman, Lane Kiffin, and whoever it is, is gonna get a bag,” he continued. “They’re talking about serious bags. And there was a level of back channeling last year with Marcus Freeman and Florida gauging interest, just like there’s always been Lane Kiffin flirting with a return to the state of Florida… So the dream, ideal candidate is dropping a bag and taking Marcus Freeman from Notre Dame.”
Is Marcus Freeman a real candidate for Florida and Penn State?
Let’s start with the truth in Le Betard’s statements. Yes, Lane Kiffin is a very real candidate for the University of Florida job. There is legitimate smoke there, and it is all going to depend on whether Kiffin wants to leave Ole Miss for the pressure of being the head man of the Gators. Money won’t be an issue, but it is just a question of comfort in making that decision for Kiffin. Missouri head coach Eliah Drinkwitz is also another name to know for the Gators as well.
When it comes to Coach Freeman and the interest from both programs, is it legitimate? For sure. Both programs are going to have some interest in Freeman, and they should. They aren’t, however, the first or last program that is going to have interest. From the side of Freeman, there doesn’t appear to be any interest in either job right now. Just because a program has interest in a head coach, it doesn’t make them a real candidate. This needs to be a two-sided conversation.
While it will be an unpopular option for some, neither Florida nor Penn State is a better job than Notre Dame right now. The Fighting Irish program is more than okay with playing the NIL game, and the revenue share model has even made the money conversation a moot point. Notre Dame can battle with any program in college football when it chooses to.
Florida even makes less sense for Freeman right now. As a person who grew up in Ohio, played at Ohio State, and has coached at Ohio State, Purdue, Cincinnati, and Notre Dame, he has clear Midwest roots. Would Freeman be successful in recruiting and coaching in the state of Florida? For sure, but it feels like a very parallel job, especially with the challenges surrounding the Gators’ program right now.
Le Betard also mentioned the NFL being a goal for Freeman, and while it is possible that is true, there is nothing to back up that claim. Regardless, it feels very, very unlikely that Freeman will consider either job. Anything is possible, I suppose, but I wouldn’t read into any of this smoke right now. There doesn’t appear to be much substance to it, and until there is, this conversation is just to make the coaching search more conversational.
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