Could the Chicago Bears coaching search continue for at least another week?
According to the NFL Network, the Bears would like to interview Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman. The Irish are scheduled to face Ohio State on Jan. 20 in the College Football Playoffs national championship game, where Freeman will be the first black coach to become head coach of a team playing for the national title.
According to the report, the Bears “conducted extensive research” on Freeman “for months.” This language would certainly make it seem like the Bears would view him as a legitimate candidate at this point.
If Freeman wants to at least talk to the Bears, any interview would likely take place after the title game. And if the Bears really want to wait to talk to Freeman, waiting until his season is over probably isn’t such a big deal.
After all, many candidates the Bears we’ve already interviewed are still coaching in the NFL playoffs. Detroit assistants Aaron Glenn and Ben Johnson have spoken to the Bears and the Lions will play their first playoff game on Jan. 18 or 19. And the Baltimore Ravens and offensive coordinator Todd Monken are already in the divisional round after beating Pittsburgh. Steelers Saturday night.
Freeman just turned 39 and is in his third season as Notre Dame head coach after taking over for Brian Kelly. Note Dame is 14-1 this season and the Irish have beaten Indiana, Georgia and Penn State so far in the CFP. The Irish beat the Nittany Lions 27-24 at the Orange Bowl on Thursday.
Overall, Notre Dame is 33-9 during Freeman’s tenure. The team has improved its record in each of Freeman’s seasons with the team after going 9-4 in 2022.
Freeman was Notre Dame’s defensive coordinator for one season before becoming the team’s head coach. The former Ohio State linebacker was Cincinnati’s defensive coordinator from 2017-2020 before joining South Bend.
The Bears are in the market for a head coach after making a midseason coaching change for the first time in franchise history. The team fired coach Matt Eberflus after a 4-8 start and finished the season 1-4 under interim coach Thomas Brown. Chicago lost 10 straight games before winning the season finale against the Green Bay Packers.