Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman will make history later this month as the first Black head coach to lead his team in the College Football National Championship.
Freeman, 39, and Notre Dame defeated Penn State 27-24 in the Orange Bowl semifinal game on Thursday, Jan. 9, punching their ticket to the national championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Jan. 20.
The head coach, whose father is Black and mother is South Korean, according to CBS, is also the first head coach of Asian descent to lead his team in the college football national title game.
After Notre Dame’s semifinal victory, Freeman said in his postgame interview that he’s honored by the opportunity, adding, “I’ve said this before: I don’t ever want to take attention away from the team.”
“It is an honor, and I hope all coaches — minorities, Black, Asian, white, it doesn’t matter, great people — continue to get opportunities to lead young men like this,” Freeman continued.
“But this ain’t about me. This is about us. We’re going to celebrate what we’ve done because it’s so special.”
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NFL legend and Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders reacted to Freeman becoming the first Black head coach in a post on X. “Congratulations my brother,” Sanders, 57, wrote.
Notre Dame’s win on Thursday saw multiple feel-good moments for Freeman’s team, including quarterback Riley Leonard adorably shouting out his girlfriend Molly Walding to give her an orange after the confetti fell on the field.
Had Notre Dame not come out on top during the semifinal, Penn State’s James Franklin would have become the first Black head coach to advance to the CFP National Championship.
Freeman is now in his third season as head coach at Notre Dame, taking on the position after Brian Kelly’s departure in 2021. His record with the team is now at 34-9.
Notre Dame and Freeman will learn Friday night if they’ll face Texas or Ohio State — Freeman’s alma mater — in the championship game.
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