ND Coaching Search Megathread

[Free Manera]

I think the hold up is just contract negotiations. There has only been one full day since Kelly left. You can't execute a major contract in one day, especially when you were totally unprepared for it. And you can't make an announcement without a deal in place.

I bet we hear something by the weekend.

 

[IHateMarkMay]

Lol,… ransoms thoughts with acamp1900:

Swarbrick has everything in place, it’s done,… but he doesn’t want another playoff blowout so he’s purposely waiting until after the final selection to make sure we get left out,… 3D chess lol

This is something I could see him doing. If somehow it looks like we can get that #3 spot against Cincy, he'll announce Saturday night. If it's #4 against UGA or left out, announce next week lol

 

[notredomer23]

Swarbrick may think Freeman has potential but he's just not ready yet. That's going to make this not simple at all. All the outside pressure only makes it more difficult.

I don't disagree this is a possibility but then why interview Rees?

 

[Irish#1]

It’s wild to see the power of social media in relation to this HC position. Back when Kelly replaced Weis this incredible force of pressure wasn’t around.

I’m very active on Twitter & there is massive support & desire from current players, recruits, former players, fans and alums to hire Marcus.

I love the energy around it all & it feels like there’d be an overwhelmingly positive response if Jack did just that.. It’s just such a strong presence & one that Jack has never really had to deal with in such an open forum.. he’s obviously dealt with alums, former players calling & hearing current players thoughts..

But this is on another level.. we’ve got unsigned recruits calling for Freeman to be the HC.. Ex players from decades ago.. Hundreds and thousands of fans.

It’s just an interesting time..

I was thinking about this last night. The key is how much is Jack paying attention to this? Do you think he's checking Twitter or is he working on the contract? Is his assistant or someone else in the AD office in his ear telling him what's happening? He knows where the players stand. Much guess is he's hearing about it from someone. He's in a win win situation by hiring Freeman.

 

[NorthDakota]

I don't disagree this is a possibility but then why interview Rees?

reverse Rooney Rule

 

[SouthSideChiDomer]

At this point it would be shocking if it's not Freeman with Rees as OC. The most interesting thing will be filling out the rest of the staff. I think Mickens, Taylor, McNulty, and O'Leary all stay.

Therefore the likely openings will be:

O line
WR
DC (Elston?)
Special Teams

If Freeman is the HC, you also need a new LB coach.

 

[Rogue219]

Kelly offered Tony Alford to come to LSU and Alford turned him down.

 

[DCDomer]

If you told me a year ago that the next HC would be Fickell, I would have been elated. Now, I have a pit in my stomach thinking of anyone except Freeman taking over.

 

[IrishRazor82]

If you told me a year ago that the next HC would be Fickell, I would have been elated. Now, I have a pit in my stomach thinking of anyone except Freeman taking over.

Did the undefeated season and walking into ND stadium and winning by 2 scores scare you off?

 

[InKellyWeTrust]

So is this Freeman to OSU chatter on internet message boards real?

We are going to screw this up aren't we?

 

[Wild Bill]

I think the timing of this whole thing is what makes it have to be Freeman. If we go with anybody else we will essentially lose two recruiting classes. Does a new coach really want to start from scratch like that?

Losing recruits wouldn't stop me from doing what I thought was right but JS has to consider it now bc it's both the recruits and transfer portal that could be an issue.

That said, ND is rarely dictated too by the masses much less 17 year olds so we'll see.

 

[IrishRazor82]

I think the hold up is just contract negotiations. There has only been one full day since Kelly left. You can't execute a major contract in one day, especially when you were totally unprepared for it. And you can't make an announcement without a deal in place.

I bet we hear something by the weekend.

But announce "to be named" and work the details after. That happens all the time.

 

[Irish#1]

part of me wonders if this is simply the holdup as well. Freeman may be the guy and he wants to be paid like he's a proven head coach, when he's not. JS may be low balling him into a cheaper contract. That's simply going to be really hard to do right now with all of these astronomical contracts and salaries.

Jack's not going to low ball him. I know some are questioning him because he didn't announce Freeman or Fickell within five minutes of Kelly leaving, but Jack is a sharp guy and will have this sorted out shortly.

 

[Rogue219]

If Freeman is the HC, you also need a new LB coach.

He could potentially still coach LB as the head coach. It's been done.

 

[StPaul_Irish]

So is this Freeman to OSU chatter on internet message boards real?

We are going to screw this up aren't we?

I mean there was a "Wheels Up" flight from SB to Columbus yesterday.... and now its being reported on Bucknuts (not sure how many sources) that Freeman is expected to be the OSU DC by Friday. So.... we are prob screwing this up. Savvy Jack is prob saying "not gonna tell me what to do" and is playing hard ball to show his dominance. Yeah, we are screwing this up.

 

[P_Rose]

Posted this in the Brian Kelly LSU thread also. According to Ross Dellenger, Jack Swarbick is skipping the Committee's expansion meeting today to meet with Rees and Freeman.

 

[IHateMarkMay]

I don't disagree this is a possibility but then why interview Rees?

I know an "interview " was reported, but who is to say it wasn't just JS saying "Tommy, what will it take to keep you here? I know LSU is offering you your salary plus 400k, what if we gave you your salary plus a 401k?"

All except the poor dad joke in the end... Might have just been negotiations to figure out what needs to be done to get him to stay.

 

[DCDomer]

Did the undefeated season and walking into ND stadium and winning by 2 scores scare you off?

No, Freeman's 247 profile did.

 

[BleedingGold]

If you were Freeman would you accept anything other than a HC job right now? You are being courted for how many HC jobs?

 

[Irish#1]

If you told me a year ago that the next HC would be Fickell, I would have been elated. Now, I have a pit in my stomach thinking of anyone except Freeman taking over.

And earlier this year many were questioning how good of a DC he really was. lol

 

[Rasputin]

"We think extremely highly of Coach Freeman but we weren't in the position to rush this process for him or any other candidate. We're certainly disappointed that he has chosen to pursue another opportunity, but we wish him the best of luck."

"I think extremely highly of Jennifer Aniston, but I wasn't in a position to commit to her just yet as I'm still texting with Liz Hurley and Selma Hayak and hoping they respond. I'm certainly disappointed that Jen has decided to move out of our house to pursue other men, but I wish her the best of luck."

 

[Wild Bill]

Marcus Freeman is not Faust, Davie, or Weis. He would be stepping into a completely different situation in 2022 than all three of them did. We have seen, very recently, coordinators get handed the keys as first time head coaches (Riley, Day) and those hires have yielded positive results on the field.

Head coaching experience is without a doubt a plus, but it should not be a deal breaker any longer. Freeman has been at ND for a year, so he's had that benefit and I think his heart and mind are in it (Davie's wasn't).

They need to do this. There is an element of risk, but there is always going to be that no matter who you hire.

I agree he's a risk worth taking from what little I know if him. He's is mid to low 30s, I think. A young guy full of energy can quickly be overwhelmed by this job for reasons he doesn't fully understand yet.

Maybe JS sees something there that is a concern. Maybe he hasn't seen enough to be convinced.

We all know the good things about him but none of us know the deficiencies. And there are some. Everyone has them.

​​​​​​

 

[wizards8507]

"I think extremely highly of Jennifer Aniston, but I wasn't in a position to commit to her just yet as I'm still texting with Liz Hurley and Selma Hayak and hoping they respond. I'm certainly disappointed that Jen has decided to move out of our house to pursue other men, but I wish her the best of luck."

Simple as.

 

[WildMan80]

And earlier this year many were questioning how good of a DC he really was. lol

Lmao amazing..

 

[NDFAN2008]

Here's the problem if you don't promote Freeman chances are he goes to Ohio State to be their DC, he isn't going to stick around at ND if another head coach comes along.

 

[Southside Sully]

I mean there was a "Wheels Up" flight from SB to Columbus yesterday.... and now its being reported on Bucknuts (not sure how many sources) that Freeman is expected to be the OSU DC by Friday. So.... we are prob screwing this up. Savvy Jack is prob saying "not gonna tell me what to do" and is playing hard ball to show his dominance. Yeah, we are screwing this up.

interesting because he was visiting Bowen yesterday
https://twitter.com/mattfreemanisd/status/1465388255294152704?s=21

 

[Rogue219]

I don't disagree this is a possibility but then why interview Rees?

Rees was interviewed to stay on as OC, wasn't he? I would be surprised if they are considering him to be HC.

Rees is well liked among his coaching peers and the players. He's a good communicator and is showing improvement in the OC role according to many. I know he's not popular on most boards and social media among the ND fanbase, but he has a lot of fans outside of that realm.

Freeman as the HC with Rees having full control of the offense might be a really good thing moving forward.

 

[Free Manera]

The thing to keep in mind with Freeman is that literally every person he comes into contact with glows about him. He is closer to Nick Saban than he is to Bob Davie and that's not hyperbole. He is intensely dedicated, smart, and his ability to connect with people (not just recruits) seems to be extraordinary. He is also a family man with 6 kids, a 6 year NFL veteran, a good speaker, and loyal to his guys.

He has no head coaching experience, and we have no idea how he handles game day decisions. But his intangibles make it very difficult to pass him up, knowing you then lose him.

Hiring Fickell is safe. Campbell to a lesser extent. These guys are gonna have a high floor. But are they going to have a ceiling like Freeman? Probably not.

Freeman's ceiling is multiple championships. He is going to tirelessly find the right dudes for his roster and the right coaches for his staff. He had an immediate impact on the coaching staff when he arrived, because they saw how he recruited and were like holy shit is that how you do it?

He is going to connect with his players. The days of "Let's be tough gentlemen and win a football game" are over.

It will be more like, "Leave Brian Kelly for me."

 

[WildMan80]

So now there’s “trusted sources” at OSU claiming he’ll be the DC announced by Friday & another at Notre Dame saying Swarbricks team was up all night last night & the deal with Freeman is 100% done. They also mention Jack really likes Fickell but the college playoff situation in many ways disabled that moving forward.

The rumor mill is churning lol

But seriously.. our momentum in recruiting alone is reason enough to back the truck up for Freeman.

 

[ulukinatme]

All this flight talk and airplane tracking reminds me of the Texas board after Strong was let go. Anytime a flight from Tuscaloosa to Austin was scheduled it was "Saban's a done deal!"