Marcus Freeman began his college football career as a player under Luke Fickell. Now he gets to coach against him.
No. 4 Notre Dame and Wisconsin open their season facing off on Sunday night at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin, bringing together two head coaches whose shared history spans more than two decades.
Freeman and Fickell enter the matchup with personal and professional ties that have helped shape both programs and the coaching staffs surrounding them.
A Foundational Relationship From Columbus To Cincinnati
The connection between the two head coaches began when Freeman played linebacker at Ohio State from 2004 to 2008, where Fickell served as his position coach.
Marcus Freeman played linebacker at Ohio State, where Luke Fickell served as his position coach from 2004-08. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)
That player-coach relationship evolved nearly a decade later when Fickell hired Freeman as his linebackers coach and defensive coordinator at Cincinnati, a role Freeman held from 2017 through 2020.
Over those four seasons, Freeman helped build the Bearcats’ defense into a nationally-renowned unit, gaining his first extended experience leading a college defense before moving onto Notre Dame in 2021.
Mutual Respect And Shared Philosophies
Despite their shared past, both coaches established a distinctly different culture within their respective programs as head coach. Fickell noted that Freeman’s progression into one of college football’s top head coaches stems from his ability to chart his own course rather than strictly replicating the methods of his mentors.
“The ones who have the most success, like Marcus has, are ones who create an identity for themselves, not just where they’ve been, whether it’s his time with us at Cincinnati or his time at Ohio State or his time under Jim Tressel,” Fickell said.
Marcus Freeman on Cincinnati’s sideline, where he worked under Luke Fickell as linebackers coach and defensive coordinator from 2017-20. (Photo by Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Freeman has pointed to Fickell as a foundational figure in his coaching development, highlighting specific work habits and expectations that he carried forward into his head coaching career.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for him,” Freeman said. “I wouldn’t be in this position without the investment he made in me. There’s traits that every coach I’ve had a player, as a coach, that I have in me. When I think about Luke Fickell, I think about a tireless worker, I think about the demands that he has for his players, his coaches. And the mindset of, ‘This is the way we’re going to play. This is who we are. This is our identity, and we’re committed to it.'”
Prior Matchup And Staff Connections
Sunday will not mark the first time Freeman and Fickell have stood on opposite sidelines.
In 2021, Fickell led Cincinnati to a 24-13 victory at Notre Dame Stadium, a key win during the Bearcats’ run to the College Football Playoff. Freeman was Notre Dame’s defensive coordinator on Brian Kelly’s staff during that game before taking over the program as head coach when Kelly departed for LSU at the end of the regular season.
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The ties between the Badgers and Fighting Irish also extend beyond the two head coaches.
Notre Dame offensive line coach Joe Rudolph spent six seasons as Wisconsin’s offensive coordinator under former head coach Paul Chryst from 2015 to 2020, and remained on staff in 2021 as offensive line coach. Notre Dame offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock, quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli, and wide receivers coach Mike Brown all served on Fickell’s Cincinnati staff during that 2021 playoff season.
“It’s not just Marcus that we’ve got a long history with,” Fickell said. “There’s a lot of guys over there that in particular we’ve got great relationships with, and had great relationships with. Like I’ve always said, I wouldn’t be sitting here today if it wasn’t for not just Freeman, but a lot of those guys over on that staff.”
Different Trajectories Heading Into Lambeau Field
While the personal connections run deep, the two programs enter Sunday in completely different situations.
Notre Dame are three-touchdown favorite following a 24-4 run over the past two seasons, which included an appearance in the College Football Playoff championship game in 2024.
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman and quarterback CJ Carr, who threw for 2,741 yards and 24 touchdowns in his first-year as a starter in 2025.(Photo by Joseph Weiser/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The Fighting Irish will be led on the field by quarterback CJ Carr, alongside three preseason Associated Press All-America defensive selections in first-team cornerback Leonard Moore, second-team linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, and safety Brauntae Johnson.
Wisconsin enters Fickell’s fourth year seeking stability after back-to-back losing campaigns. The Badgers finished 4-8 in 2025 and 5-7 in 2024, snapping a 22-year streak of winning seasons.
Notre Dame vs. Wisconsin is slated to kickoff at 7:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.
