NOTRE DAME, Indiana – University of Notre Dame football head coach Dick Corbett, Brian Kelly, announced on Friday the addition of Marcus Freeman to his coaching staff. Freeman will serve as Bob Hinton’s defensive coordinator and work directly with the Irish defenders. Hiring will be effective at the end of the university’s standard hiring process.
“As we sought to find someone to lead our defense, it was important to find the right fit for our program, and Marcus and his family are just that,” Kelly said. “He was very successful on the field, both in leading a defense and in his direct work with his defenders. In addition, he is considered among the elite recruiters in the ranks of coaches.
“The work that Marcus did in raising the programs he was part of speaks for itself, but just as important is the exceptional work he has done in building relationships with his staff and players. Marcus was our main choice to become our next defensive coordinator, and we are pleased that he and his family will join us at Notre Dame. ”
Freeman is coming to South Bend from his former position as defensive coordinator and line coach at the University of Cincinnati, a position he has held since January 2017.
Bearcats (9-1) made national noise in 2020-21, entering the bowl season as the 8th-ranked team in the nation and winning the American Athletics Conference Championship, the first direct league title of the 2009 program, when Kelly served as Cincinnati head coach. Cincinnati appeared in the Chik-Fil-A Peach Bowl, falling by a narrow margin to No. 9 Georgia after a undefeated regular season.
Cincinnati’s defense ranked in the Top 20 nationally in several categories for 2020-21, including 13th place in total defense (324.6 yards per game) and eighth in scoring defense (16.8 points per game) of all FBS teams. In addition, the Bearcats were third in the team that passed the efficiency defense (101.25), 14th in the fast defense (111.1 yards per game), 15th in the red zone defense (0.735 rate) , 17th in fourth down defense (0.375 rate), 16th in team sacks (3.0 per game) and 10th in turnover earned (21).
Bearcat’s corner, Ahmad Gardner, has won multiple All-America selections, being named in the first teams FWAA and USA TODAY, in addition to the secondary teams Associated Press, AFCA and The Athletic. He was also named the I All-AAC team.
Prior to his 2020 success, Freeman was part of a UC staff that coached the Bearcats in 11-win back-to-back seasons in 2018 and 2019, in the Eastern Division Conference of the 2019 American Athletics Conference and in consecutive wins of the game in 2018 Military bowl and ticket 2019 Smarter bowl in Birmingham.
The Bearcats ranked at the top of the AAC 2019 standings in defending the score for the second consecutive season and ranked among the top three in the league in fast and total defense. In 2018, Cincinnati led the American in hurried defense, scoring defense and total defense and ranked among the Top-15 in the NCAA FBS in all three categories.
Prior to Cincinnati, Freeman spent four years at Purdue, where he coached defenders in all four seasons and served as Boilermakers co-defensive coordinator in 2015. He is credited with turning the Purdue back-up corps into a force with several notable disciples, including: Markus Bailey, 2016 Honorable Mention All-Big Ten Selection and Boilermaker Defense Leader with 97 Approaches; Jimmy Herman, winner of the Purdue’s Guy “Red” Mackey Award and the Noble E. Kizer Award, for exemplifying the overall success of the University’s intercollegiate athletics program and winning the highest GPA among football players in the 2016 calendar year; and Ja’Whaun Bentley, a spring American Today USA in 2014 and voted captain of his teammates before the 2015 season.
Freeman coached Kent State defenders from 2011-12, where he guided quarterback Luke Batton to the 2012 All-Mid-Mid-American conference honors, after finishing with 143 total attacks, including 80 solo stops. External linebacker CJ Malauulu was the third selection team for all conferences in 2012, recording a total of 72 approaches.
Freeman began his coaching career as a graduate assistant coach at alma mater, Ohio, in 2010, while the Buckeyes won 12-1 with a victory in the Sugar Bowl.
A four-year winner for the Buckeyes in 2004-08, Freeman earned All-Big Ten honors in the second team in 2008, while helping lead Ohio to four conference titles, three BCS bowls and two trips to the game with national title during his career. She played in the 2009 Senior Bowl and was selected in the fifth-round NFL draft of the Chicago Bears, spending time with the Bears, Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans before a medical condition ended her playing career.
A 2007 Ohio State graduate, Freeman earned All-Big Ten academic and academic honors in all districts. In 2011, he earned a master’s degree in sports management from Ohio. He graduated from Wayne High School in Huber Heights, Ohio and was an All-American parade.
Freeman has a daughter, Bria, and he and his wife, Joanna, have six children: Vinny, Siena, Gino, Nico, Capri and Rocco.
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Born: January 10, 1986
Hometown: Huber Hts., Ohio
Wife: Joanna
Children: Bria, Vinny, Siena, Gino, Nico, Capri, Rocco
Education: Ohio State (2007, BS; 2011, MS)
Year in coach: 10th
PLAY CAREER
2004-08: Ohio State (Linebacker)
2009: Chicago Bears (Linebacker); Buffalo Bills (Linebacker); Houston Texans (Linebacker)
COACHING CAREER
YEAR: SCHOOL – POSITION
2010: Ohio State – Graduate Assistant
2011-12: Kent State – Linebackers
2013-15: Purdue – Linebackers
2016: Purdue – Co-Coordinator Defensive / Linebackers
2017-: Cincinnati – Defensive Coordinator / Linebackers
COACHED DISEASES
YEAR: SCHOOL – BOL
2010: Ohio State – Sugar
2012: Kent State – GoDaddy.com
2018: Cincinnati – Military
2019: Cincinnati – Birmingham
2020: Cincinnati – Peach
DISEASES HAVE BEEN PLAYED
YEAR: SCHOOL – BOL
2005: Ohio State – Fiesta
2006: Ohio State – BCS National Championship
2007: Ohio State – BCS National Championship
2008: Ohio State – Fiesta