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Freeman has agreed to a long-term contract
extension, making him one of the nation's highest-paid coaches.
It was announced on NBC's Football Night in America pregame show
Sunday night. NBC holds the broadcast rights to televise Notre
Dame games.
“I am grateful for the support of the Board of Trustees,”
Freeman said in a statement released by the athletic department.
"The investment they continue to pour into our program is
invaluable to our student-athletes and staff. This commitment
goes well beyond myself, as they are dedicated to ensuring all
aspects of our program are competitive within the upper echelon
of college football.”
The 38-year-old Freeman has gone 30-9 in his three seasons in
South Bend, Indiana, and led the Fighting Irish to their first
playoff appearance since 2021.
After No. 3 Notre Dame lost its second game of the season to
Northern Illinois, Freeman, knowing a second loss could
eliminate the Irish from playoff contention, treated each of the
final 10 contests like an elimination game. The Irish responded
by winning all 10 games, moving back into The Associated Press'
top five and earning a first-round home game as the No. 7 seed.
They will host No. 9 Indiana (No. 10 seed) Friday night in the
first playoff game held on a college campus. The winner advances
to face No. 2 Georgia (No. 2).
Freeman was a fifth-round draft pick of the Chicago Bears in
2009 and also spent time on the rosters of Buffalo and Houston
before announcing his retirement in 2010. He then returned to
his alma mater, Ohio State, as a graduate assistant.
His coaching stops included Kent State and Purdue, where he was
promoted to defensive coordinator in 2016. The next season,
Freeman left for Cincinnati where he stayed through 2020. He was
hired as Notre Dame's defensive coordinator in 2021 and was
promoted to coach when Brian Kelly took the LSU job.
Freeman won nine games in his first season as head coach, 10 in
his second season and 11 this year.
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