Brian Kelly reportedly tries to lure high-profile defensive coordinator to LSU
Ed Orgeron tried to snag Marcus Freeman from Cincinnati last offseason when he was looking to replace Bo Pelini as his defensive coordinator. Freeman passed on the job, electing instead to head to South Bend and serve as Brian Kelly’s defensive coordinator at Notre Dame.
Funny how things work out.
According to The Athletic’s Pete Sampson, Kelly, now the head coach of the Tigers, reached out to Freeman on Monday in an effort to bring him to Baton Rouge. Kelly wants to retain Freeman as his defensive coordinator and, according to Sampson, make him the highest-paid defensive coordinator in college football.
That title currently belongs to Clemson’s Brent Venables, who makes $2.5 million a year. But LSU shelled out major money to bring Kelly aboard, so it would stand to reason the assistant salary pool would have been an attractive part of the offer as well.
Freeman spearheaded elite defenses at Cincinnati during his time there (2018-20) and in his first year at ND, he coached All-American safety Kyle Hamilton, a likely top choice in next summer’s NFL Draft. The 2021 season was up and down defensively, but Freeman did still see slight improvement. The Irish were a half-yard better than last year on a per-play basis, limiting teams to 5.14 yards per play (32nd nationally). They also were a shade better in terms of scoring defense, allowing 18.3 points this year (11th) compared to 19.7 last season (14th).
The defensive coordinator could also be in play to be Kelly’s replacement at Notre Dame, per reports. Freeman’s name seems to be a hot topic this coaching carousel.