As the NFL coaching carousel starts to pick up speed, one notable name has been understandably absent.
Notre Dame's Marcus Freeman, who has been a popular name in coaching search rumblings over the past two years, is out of the NFL mix this year after announcing on Dec. 29 that he plans to "run it back" with the Fighting Irish in 2026.
But that social media statement hasn't stopped NFL clubs from wish-casting him to the pros.
Freeman still "looms large in the NFL coaching carousel," NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Sunday on NFL GameDay Morning, with many teams still projecting the Notre Dame coach to hop to the league.
"Every NFL team that covets him, has an opening and views him as highly as they do basically ignored that," Rapoport said of Freeman's "run it back" statement. "My understanding is Marcus Freeman, who did receive a contract adjustment -- not extension, adjustment -- from Notre Dame for his agreement to stay, these teams who viewed him highly still think that there's a chance that he comes to the NFL. They still believe that he is a top-tier candidate.
"Now, it would probably not be like, 'Marcus Freeman, come in and interview.' It would be they go through the process and then say this is the guy we want. That's really the only way it would work."
Freeman, 40, had been tied to the Giants' head coaching vacancy after New York fired Brian Daboll during the 2025 season. NFL Network Insider Mike Garafolo reported on Dec. 21 that Freeman was Big Blue's top college candidate.
As of Sunday morning, there are eight NFL head coach vacancies, of the expected (Raiders, Titans) and unexpected (Dolphins, Ravens) variety.
Freeman is entering his fifth full season as Notre Dame (one game as interim coach in 2021). He carries with him a 43-12 record, four bowl wins and an appearance in last year's College Football Playoff title game. His .782 winning percentage ranks fifth among Irish coaches who lasted more than one season, just behind Notre Dame legend Ara Parseghian.
Freeman has a brief familiarity with the NFL. A former Ohio State linebacker and 2009 fifth-round pick of the Bears, he hopped around practice squads during his rookie season before retiring in 2010 with an enlarged heart condition.
After his NFL exit, he went into coaching, climbing the ranks as he jumped from Ohio State to Kent State to Purdue to Cincinnati and then finally to Notre Dame, where he replaced Brian Kelly after the 2020 season.
There are currently no college coaches requested to interview for NFL head coaching jobs. That could change if Freeman is willing to make the jump.
