Report: Bears Did 'Extensive Research' on Notre Dame's Marcus Freeman for HC Job

The Chicago Bears may look toward the college game for their next head coach.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Sunday that Chicago "wants to interview" Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman for its vacancy. While Pelissero noted it is "unlikely that he would entertain NFL overtures prior to" the Fighting Irish's national championship game against Ohio State on Jan. 20, the coach has been on Chicago's radar.

"The Bears have done extensive research for months on Marcus Freeman," Pelissero reported. "He is only 39 years old, it would not be a shock if at some point he at least considers going to the NFL."

This is not the first time Freeman was on the Bears' radar, as they drafted him in the fifth round in 2009 after his linebacking career at Ohio State.

While he never played in a regular-season game, he was also a member of the Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans at times before starting his coaching career.

While Freeman might be something of a surprising candidate seeing how he doesn't have any head-coaching experience, it is impossible not to be impressed with his quick rise in the college ranks.

After spending time as a graduate assistant with Ohio State, linebackers coach at Kent State, and linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator at Purdue, Freeman joined Cincinnati as its defensive coordinator for the 2017 campaign. He and head coach Luke Fickell helped turn the program around from a 4-8 team in 2016 to a College Football contender.

Cincinnati reached the Peach Bowl in Freeman's final season as D.C. and the CFP in the first year after he left to become Notre Dame's D.C., although he surely helped set the foundation for the program's success.

And he was only the D.C. at Notre Dame for one season before taking over as head coach when Brian Kelly left for LSU.

Freeman is 33-9 overall with the Fighting Irish and one win away from leading them to their first national championship since the 1988 campaign. They have already defeated Indiana, Georgia and Penn State leading into the showdown with the coach's alma mater.

The team's success under Freeman has surely caught the attention of the Bears, who need their own turnaround.

They haven't won a playoff game since the 2010 season and are coming off a 5-12 effort in 2024 despite elevated expectations heading into the campaign after selecting Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall draft pick.

Williams' ability to live up to his potential will ultimately determine Chicago's ceiling in the coming years, which may be reason to hesitate when it comes to Freeman. After all, he has a defensive background and might not be the perfect candidate to help a young quarterback fulfill that potential.

It would make the offensive coordinator hire all the more important if Chicago did decide to hire Freeman.