Marcus Freeman named Dick Corbett Head Football Coach

[pumpdog20]

Does anyone know if Freeman actually interviewed for the A&M job? Just Curious. I give Freeman a B+ so far and so far he is head and shoulders better than Kelly and here are a few examples why.
Kelly would keep bad assitants around way to long, Freeman has shown that if it isn't working to move on.
Under Kelly how many times did we have players suspended, not elgible? Ect. I haven't seen that happen under Freeman.
Freeman has seemed to upgrade everything he loses an assistant.
Kelly was notrious for settling for the QB he had on the roster, Freeman doesn't care whose feelings he hurts he has brought in guys to compete and has used the portal a lot better.

Did I miss somewhere that there is speculation that MF interviewed for the A&M job?

 

[zelezo vlk]

Did I miss somewhere that there is speculation that MF interviewed for the A&M job?

Yeah there were people on this site speculating that MF interviewed for the job but I have a hard time imagining that he did just because I don't see why he would appeal to the Aggies. You could argue that Elko didn't blow it out of the water at Duke but he was a DC in College Station for years and highly respected by alums.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

Joe Moore wasn’t available

To be fair, he's been dead for over 20 years, but I suppose if you wanted to be one of those people accusing the administration of not being serious about football you could have at it.

 

[Katzenboyer]

Apropos of nothing:

 

[Ndaccountant]

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

Notre Dame paid Marcus Freeman more than $6.5 million in 2022, per tax docs

The school released its tax forms Monday, giving us a glimpse of its highest-compensated employees

www.insidezonemf.com

 

[calvegas04]

This is his make or break year

 

[PutuporShutup]

This is his make or break year

Yep....... 10-2 should get him a passing grade but be on the hot seat. Anything worse than 10-2 the program has to look really hard at what they want to be. The only reason we don't go 11-1 or better is due to him. We have everything else from players/coaches, except maybe one tackle. Freeman as a game day coach and consistent prep is the biggest unproven on the team.

With that negative take - I do expect a great season and would be more shocked with 9-3 than 12-0.

 

[IrishLion]

Whether his tenure as HC works out or not, he’s worth every single penny (and also whatever income/incentives ND doesn’t have to report) as an ambassador for the program, the university, and for the idea oh how both entities can work together to elevate in the NIL era.

 

[Green Mountains]

Whether his tenure as HC works out or not, he’s worth every single penny (and also whatever income/incentives ND doesn’t have to report) as an ambassador for the program, the university, and for the idea oh how both entities can work together to elevate in the NIL era.

THIS!!! Completely agree. Other than coaching X's and O's, this is how the head coach model at ND needs to work. (I'm not discounting the coaching X's and O's).

 

[NDFAN2008]

We can go 10-2 and lose first playoff game and Freeman is the right guy, I'd pay him 10 Million a year, you ain't going to get a better coach who sells the school and embraces it. Freeman spends his off days travel to watch the womens team or Lacrosse and Kelly would be out golfing.

 

[IrishLion]

We can go 10-2 and lose first playoff game and Freeman is the right guy, I'd pay him 10 Million a year, you ain't going to get a better coach who sells the school and embraces it. Freeman spends his off days travel to watch the womens team or Lacrosse and Kelly would be out golfing.

I love MFMF as much as the next guy, but you have to be realistic when discounting work rates between two different guys.

BK came in and had to work his ass off for 5 straight years to get ND up to speed as a program.

The foundation from BK is such that MFMF can afford to spend his limited free time continuing the ambassador work.

There’s also the fact that MFMF is young. He’s gonna go as hard as possible with his schedule for the next few years… but if by some miracle he is still coaching ND 8 years from now, he’s gonna have reevaluate how he spends his time, because it’s just not realistic to sustain a crazy social pace at a place like ND.

 

[ulukinatme]

I love MFMF as much as the next guy, but you have to be realistic when discounting work rates between two different guys.

BK came in and had to work his ass off for 5 straight years to get ND up to speed as a program.

The foundation from BK is such that MFMF can afford to spend his limited free time continuing the ambassador work.

There’s also the fact that MFMF is young. He’s gonna go as hard as possible with his schedule for the next few years… but if by some miracle he is still coaching ND 8 years from now, he’s gonna have reevaluate how he spends his time, because it’s just not realistic to sustain a crazy social pace at a place like ND.

Truth. The good coaches at ND either die doing the job, or they run themselves into the ground and end up having to retire for their health. Obviously Knute was one of the former, and I think Ara and Leahy encompassed the later. Lou basically got forced out after he got hamstrung by the NCAA as far as recruiting and the university was afraid he was getting too much power, but he probably would have died coaching ND if the university didn't make the move themselves.

 

[PutuporShutup]

We can go 10-2 and lose first playoff game and Freeman is the right guy, I'd pay him 10 Million a year, you ain't going to get a better coach who sells the school and embraces it. Freeman spends his off days travel to watch the womens team or Lacrosse and Kelly would be out golfing.

this is one year due to our schedule that 10-2 is NOT a lock by any means to make the playoff

 

[stlnd01]

I love MFMF as much as the next guy, but you have to be realistic when discounting work rates between two different guys.

BK came in and had to work his ass off for 5 straight years to get ND up to speed as a program.

The foundation from BK is such that MFMF can afford to spend his limited free time continuing the ambassador work.

There’s also the fact that MFMF is young. He’s gonna go as hard as possible with his schedule for the next few years… but if by some miracle he is still coaching ND 8 years from now, he’s gonna have reevaluate how he spends his time, because it’s just not realistic to sustain a crazy social pace at a place like ND.

Yes. BK’s approach to the job evolved over time (and several times). We remember the seemingly-disconnected CEO type of the later years, but his first few years he was out doing a lot of the glad-handing alums and more of the media hits like Freeman does now. I remember when he decided he needed to throttle that back to focus on the football.

Unlike Freeman BK also came in with 25 years experience as a head coach; he didn’t need to build new systems on the fly, he knew how to run a program. Also unlike Freeman he didn’t have young kids. How Freeman does everything he does with six kids high school and younger is beyond me. If we win a natty maybe his wife should also get a statue?

 

[Irish#1]

Yep....... 10-2 should get him a passing grade but be on the hot seat. Anything worse than 10-2 the program has to look really hard at what they want to be. The only reason we don't go 11-1 or better is due to him. We have everything else from players/coaches, except maybe one tackle. Freeman as a game day coach and consistent prep is the biggest unproven on the team.

With that negative take - I do expect a great season and would be more shocked with 9-3 than 12-0.

Here we go again.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

This is his make or break year

Was that the discussion between Freeman and Bevacqua?

 

[NDohio]

5. Become my neighborhood bestie

Was that your question on the II pod this week?

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

I love MFMF as much as the next guy, but you have to be realistic when discounting work rates between two different guys.

BK came in and had to work his ass off for 5 straight years to get ND up to speed as a program.

The foundation from BK is such that MFMF can afford to spend his limited free time continuing the ambassador work.

There’s also the fact that MFMF is young. He’s gonna go as hard as possible with his schedule for the next few years… but if by some miracle he is still coaching ND 8 years from now, he’s gonna have reevaluate how he spends his time, because it’s just not realistic to sustain a crazy social pace at a place like ND.

This.

I still don't understand why people insist on comparing the situations when they really are not remotely close.

Charlie Weis was fired for a reason. Brian Kelly came into the program when he was almost 50 and had a couple of decades worth of head coaching experience behind him on his resume. The task at hand was entirely different and unique in its own right because he was coming off of three failed tenures between himself and Holtz.

Marcus Freeman isn't even 40 yet, became a first time head coach because his predecessor who hired him left for another job and walked into a very stable program as a defensive coordinator first before he took the head coaching job. Freeman is replacing Kelly, the guy who won more football games than any ND head coach ever. The landscape of the program and the entire sport itself have totally changed from when Kelly took Weis' spot to when Freeman took Kelly's.

 

[indianamouse]

This.

I still don't understand why people insist on comparing the situations when they really are not remotely close.

Charlie Weis was fired for a reason. Brian Kelly came into the program when he was almost 50 and had a couple of decades worth of head coaching experience behind him on his resume. The task at hand was entirely different and unique in its own right because he was coming off of three failed tenures between himself and Holtz.

Marcus Freeman isn't even 40 yet, became a first time head coach because his predecessor who hired him left for another job and walked into a very stable program as a defensive coordinator first before he took the head coaching job. Freeman is replacing Kelly, the guy who won more football games than any ND head coach ever. The landscape of the program and the entire sport itself have totally changed from when Kelly took Weis' spot to when Freeman took Kelly's.

Just without great quarterbacks and an empty reciever room

 

[Ndaccountant]

This.

I still don't understand why people insist on comparing the situations when they really are not remotely close.

Charlie Weis was fired for a reason. Brian Kelly came into the program when he was almost 50 and had a couple of decades worth of head coaching experience behind him on his resume. The task at hand was entirely different and unique in its own right because he was coming off of three failed tenures between himself and Holtz.

Marcus Freeman isn't even 40 yet, became a first time head coach because his predecessor who hired him left for another job and walked into a very stable program as a defensive coordinator first before he took the head coaching job. Freeman is replacing Kelly, the guy who won more football games than any ND head coach ever. The landscape of the program and the entire sport itself have totally changed from when Kelly took Weis' spot to when Freeman took Kelly's.

I think you're right.

I also think Freeman is the first coach since Lou that people actually like. Nobody really liked or wanted Boob or TW. Charlie was an alumni but he was by most accounts a pain in the ass to work with. BK we all know about.

That is why it's so energizing for everyone. If and when the day comes when Freeman is putting in two thirds the effort of today, it won't matter.

 

[calvegas04]

Was that the discussion between Freeman and Bevacqua?

Yea

 

[ulukinatme]

this is one year due to our schedule that 10-2 is NOT a lock by any means to make the playoff

Normally I'd agree, but last season everyone outside the Top 12 had 3 losses or more. Oklahoma was 12th and their schedule last year was arguably softer than ours is this season. That said, given the favorable schedule, what we're returning on both sides of the ball, plus the upgrade to OC there's no reason we should have more than 1 loss at the end of the regular season if not be undefeated.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

Yea

No shit.

Well, I guess if it's break and not make there will be consequences.

 

[Jiggafini19Deux]

I think you're right.

I also think Freeman is the first coach since Lou that people actually like. Nobody really liked or wanted Boob or TW. Charlie was an alumni but he was by most accounts a pain in the ass to work with. BK we all know about.

That is why it's so energizing for everyone. If and when the day comes when Freeman is putting in two thirds the effort of today, it won't matter.

Davie, Ty, Weis, Kelly....I don't think any of them were anyone's first choice. Hell, I was all in on Luke Fickell when Kelly left.

I want Freeman to be half the person he displays himself to be. He just seems like he's the best of us, the best of what Notre Dame is supposed to be about. We're all starved for a championship and it probably wouldn't matter who delivers the next one, but he's giving most if not all of the fan base every reason to root for HIM on top of Notre Dame Football and our own individual desires to win. In hindsight, Kelly breaking Rockne's win record and never capturing a National Championship seems sort of like poetic justice.

He's very likeable, but like @IrishLion said, he's still young and he's going to tire to a certain degree at the pace he's on. He's also probably going to get jaded to a degree has he ventures into middle age. Maybe not as jaded as previous head coaches became, but it is going to hit him even in smaller doses. If he wins one, I hope it comes soon, because the longer we wait the less likely it is going to happen. Then again, we're in a "new era" and maybe the wait won't be a bad thing depending on how it shakes out. I still believe time kills all deals. I hope time is kind to Marcus Freeman.

 

[GrangerIrish24]

Was that your question on the II pod this week?

Who do you want me to make the autograph out to?

 

[sfk324]

Just without great quarterbacks and an empty reciever room

Not even great, they weren't even good. The top 2 QBs were guys who are: 1. Now backups on the lacrosse team; and 2. washed out at Arizona effing State and came back to get a degree because he couldn't get a legitimate D1 offer to start anywhere in the portal.

It would be great if people stopped simping for Brian Kelly. But there's a certain segment of the fan base that will never do that because of his record*, and that's unfortunate.

 

[PutuporShutup]

Normally I'd agree, but last season everyone outside the Top 12 had 3 losses or more. Oklahoma was 12th and their schedule last year was arguably softer than ours is this season. That said, given the favorable schedule, what we're returning on both sides of the ball, plus the upgrade to OC there's no reason we should have more than 1 loss at the end of the regular season if not be undefeated.

Are you including conference championship games in your scenario?

 

[ulukinatme]

Are you including conference championship games in your scenario?

Those numbers came from Week 15 I believe, so yes. However, going into CCG week there were only two 2 loss teams outside of the Top 12, Iowa, and Louisville, and both picked up a 3rd loss that weekend. Oklahoma was Team #12, and as mentioned their schedule was dogshit soft. Outside of playing Texas they played a 4 loss Oklahoma State team (That lost to South Alabama and UCF) and nobody really worth a damn after that. As such, I see no reason why we shouldn't be in at 10-2 unless there happens to be a bunch more 10-2 teams in that range and their schedules are better. I really don't think we should have more than 1 loss this regular season though. Looking back through the last several seasons, right around Spot #13 in the rankings is where the 3 loss teams start to show up, it's pretty consistent.

 

[Irish4life]

Whether his tenure as HC works out or not, he’s worth every single penny (and also whatever income/incentives ND doesn’t have to report) as an ambassador for the program, the university, and for the idea oh how both entities can work together to elevate in the NIL era.

Couldn't agree more, getting everyone pulling in the same direction is something ND hasn't had in.....a long time, and Freeman has seemingly achieved that.