Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman says Irish must 'be better' to make next year's playoff

Sure, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman was disappointed with being left out of this season's College Football Playoff.

He also believes the Fighting Irish must ensure they don't suffer the same fate in future years.

A little more than a month after Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua repeatedly criticized the selection process publicly, Freeman tried to set a different tone Wednesday by dialing back the emotions and acknowledging the Irish leave that decision in the selection committee's hands.

"As we look at the moment, it was obviously disappointing, right? But you have to move forward," Freeman said. "That's what we've done as a program, that's what I've done as a leader and as I reminded the group at our team meeting on Sunday, it's our responsibility to make sure we leave no doubt, right? And moving forward we can't blame it on someone else."

The Irish thought they would make the 12-team field when the committee's second-to-last rankings had them sitting at No. 10. They had won 10 straight games and were ranked two spots ahead of Miami for the final at-large spot.

But even though neither Miami or Notre Dame played that weekend and ninth-seeded Alabama lost the SEC title game, the committee kept the three-loss Crimson Tide in the No. 9 slot and moved the Hurricanes up to No. 10 with Notre Dame sliding to No. 11 — the first team left out. Bevacqua's suggestions for a fix including expanding the field to 16 and a tweak to the selection process.

Miami responded by winning at No. 7 Texas A&M in the first round, stunning defending national champion and second-seeded Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl and beating Ole Miss in the Fiesta Bowl to return home for Monday night's national title game against No. 1 Indiana (15-0, No 1 CFP).

Alabama, meanwhile, avenged an earlier loss to No. 8 Oklahoma in the first round before suffering the worst postseason loss in school history — 38-3 to the Hoosiers in the Rose Bowl.

After the pairings were released in early December, Notre Dame's players voted not to play in any bowl game, ending their season. Freeman said he had no regrets about that decision, noting he'd asked his players multiple times to make sure that was their desire.

Still, Freeman wants his players to learn from what happened while allowing it to motivate them for 2026 and beyond.

"Although we may be, I may be confused by some of the criteria and the committee's rankings and all those different things, it's our job as we move forward that we leave no doubt," Freeman said. "You often hear me say, keep the pain and those are for moments we need reminders and as humans we often need reminders. But again, our mindset has to be to attack moving forward and to leave no doubt."

Freeman also addressed speculation about his future.

Rumors started swirling toward the end of this past NFL season that some teams were interested in hiring Freeman, who eventually restructured his contract and opted to return to Notre Dame. Then, as more NFL head coaching jobs opened over the past 10 days, another round of speculation began.

Freeman tried to put an end to that discussion.

"I am the head coach at Notre Dame," Freeman said, acknowledging if those debates continue it would be a reflection on the program's sustained success.

But when asked if he had any desire to coach in the NFL someday, Freeman first said Notre Dame provides him with every opportunity he personally hopes to achieve.

Later, though, he explained: "It may be sometime in the future if it's the right time and it's what I think is right for me. But I don't love wasting time thinking about things that aren't right in front of me, so I don't know what I'll want in however much length of time from right now. But I know I am as convicted and motivated to being the best head coach of the Notre Dame football program as I can be."

Notre Dame called the news conference to give Freeman a forum to address accusations about a confrontation with a high school wrestling coach during a recent match involving Freeman's son.

Local law enforcement authorities opted not to charge Freeman, who opened with a 2½-minute statement thanking school officials for their support and local police and the county prosecutor's office for investigating the evidence.

"My family and I have been dragged through the mud unnecessarily with clickbait headlines," Freeman said. "The reality is I behaved in a respectful and professional manner while protecting my family and that should have been the only headline.

"I know I'm a public figure, and I understand the scrutiny that comes with that," he continued. "That scrutiny should not extend to my children or any other child of a public figure. ... I'm glad this matter has been thoroughly reviewed and resolved out of respect for everyone involved. I won't comment further."