Notre Dame, Marcus Freeman belong together for at least awhile longer

It wasn’t a lucky 13. There was nothing lucky about it at all. It was hard work, sustained focus, true belief — you name it — but not luck.

Notre Dame went from 1-1 after a ghastly loss to Northern Illinois to 14-1 and in the national championship game against Ohio State, and those 13 straight wins to get all the way there were well earned and, on the whole, extraordinarily impressive. Fans of the Fighting Irish will remember that 13-game streak and this season’s team as fondly as anything since 1988 and the last national title.

They’ll double down on their support of coach Marcus Freeman, too. In only his third season in a job that once seemed like it might be too big for him, the 39-year-old became one of the brightest stars of the college ranks — not to mention the subject of NFL rumors. Freeman to the Bears didn’t happen, but there will be a pathway to the pros for Freeman for as long as he keeps Notre Dame humming.

But many will also remember that Freeman had a less-than-stellar night in the title game, a 34-23 loss to the favored Buckeyes. Down 28-7, the Irish failed to convert on a fake punt the Buckeyes clearly knew was coming. Down 31-15 and facing a fourth-and-goal from the 9 with 9:34 left, Freeman ran his kicker onto the field rather than attempt to make it a one-score game — the wrong decision regardless of the fact Mitch Jeter’s errant boot doinked off the left upright. And there were other seeming schematic shortcomings, among them — inexplicably — a mere seven rushing attempts all game by Irish running backs.

“It falls on my shoulders,” Freeman said after it was over. “As the head coach, we have to [be] better prepared for this moment. … I’ve got to make sure we prepare better for this next opportunity that we have in the future.”

It will do Freeman — who’s under long-term contract with a bumped-up salary that makes his situation enviable — some good to remain at Notre Dame, where he’s set up to keep winning.

ESPN cited Notre Dame’s “vastly improved” recruiting in ranking the Irish No. 4 in its advance stab at a top 25 for 2025. Adhering to media tradition, all the national outlets produced “way too early” top 25s in the wake of the title game, with the Irish projecting at No. 3 (The Athletic), No. 6 (CBS Sports), No. 8 (USA Today). An Irish return to the 12-team playoff will be widely expected.

Meanwhile, Freeman has the opportunity to become a more well-rounded head coach by continuing to work with deeply experienced coordinators Al Golden and Mike Denbrock. Golden, whose defense was often magnificent this season, was a head coach at Temple and Miami before a considerable stint in the NFL. The no-ego Denbrock, a lifer as an assistant, worked at Notre Dame for Ty Willingham and Brian Kelly before Freeman. It’s no wonder Freeman has come so far already.

Freeman’s emergence isn’t luck, either. He is a gifted leader, and he had a great 2024 campaign. If and when he does move on — someday, it could be to Ohio State, his alma mater — it’ll be a heck of a big deal. For now, though, he’s where he ought to be.

One fine Day

If Ohio State coach Ryan Day, on the other hand, were to take his championship and hit the road, it would be both completely justified and brilliantly cool. It doesn’t mean Day, 45, will leave Columbus. One supposes he probably won’t quite yet. But, man, he could, and who could blame him?

Day is 70-10, owner of the best winning percentage (.875) of any FBS coach, yet his family’s holiday season reportedly included death threats and an armed guard stationed outside their home. All that because of a fourth straight loss to mega-rival Michigan. After the regular-season finale, Buckeyes fans in the home crowd chanted F-bombs at Day as he left the field. It wasn’t his first experience with their absurd abusiveness.

“When you sign up for this job, that’s what you sign up for,” Day said. “You’ve got to be strong enough to withstand those storms to come out the back end.”

Yeah, well, he’s out and he’d make as much sense as anyone for an NFL opening.

Looking ahead

Some things to know about the 2025 season:

• Texas is the betting favorite to win the next national title. The group right behind the Longhorns includes Ohio State, Georgia, Oregon and Penn State. A notch lower, in terms of current odds, are Notre Dame and Alabama, both at around 16-to-1.

• Texas quarterback Arch Manning will enter the season as the Heisman Trophy favorite. An intriguing contender will be Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who routinely looked like the most talented player on the field as a freshman. Another top contender heading in will be South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers, even though he was unable to get the better of Illinois in the Citrus Bowl.

• According to one betting site at this time in 2024, Colorado two-way sensation Travis Hunter was 50-to-1 to win the Heisman. Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty wasn’t even on the board, nor was quarterback Cam Ward, who’d yet to announce he was transferring to Miami. They ended up first, second and fourth in voting for the award, demonstrating once again that we really don’t know squat about what’s going to happen many months down the road.