Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman wins the Bear Bryant Award after an incredible CFP

Notre Dame football head coach Marcus Freeman he received a significant award a few days after the end of the high school football season. The third-year coach led the Fighting Irish to the national championship game this season, where they lost close one against No. 6 Ohio State. This team accomplished a lot, winning the Sugar Bowl and the Orange Bowl en route to Atlanta.

Deservedly, Marcus Freeman is being honored for leading Notre Dame’s best team of the century in 2024. Action Network college football insider Brett McMurphy revealed Wednesday that Freeman he just won Bear Bryant Coach of the Year Award. This is the third National Coach of the Year honor Freeman has received this year.

Marcus Freeman deserves all the praise in the world for raising a titan of college football

The Fighting Irish have come a long way since theirs Week 2 home loss to Northern Illinois. After that loss, Notre Dame football went on a ten-game winning streak, overwhelming most of its opponents. Despite that impressive streak, there were plenty of questions about this team heading into the College Football Playoff.

In the recent past, when this postseason tournament was a four-team format, the Fighting Irish were largely uncompetitive against college football’s elite. That fact has changed over the course of a month in this group of twelve teams.

December 20 Notre Dame dominated No. 8 Indiana at home. The Fighting Irish followed up this victory with a a surprisingly decisive win over No. 2 Georgia on New Year’s. Then, after being down two possessions in the Orange Bowl, Marcus Freeman’s team rallied to beat No. 4 Penn State on the game-winning field goal. Resilience was the theme of this year’s Irish team, and it carried over to the national championship game.

After losing 31-7 to Ohio State, Notre Dame mounted a furious comeback, putting the contest within one possession with four minutes left. Unfortunately, the Buckeyes tied the game at 34-23 on a field goal with less than a minute left. But the Fighting Irish are much closer now than they were the last time they played for a national championship in 2013.

Overall, Freeman deserves a lot of credit for lifting a program that seemed to have a glass ceiling into the 21st century. The Fighting Irish should now be title contenders for the foreseeable future. After some reflection, the Notre Dame head coach will return and focus on winning this program the elusive championship it has been waiting for since 1988.