Freeman’s first full season as a head coach will unfold in one of the most high-profile institutions in American sports. First up: No. 2 Ohio State, Freeman’s alma mater.
Marcus Freeman spent years as a coach to watch: a star linebacker at Ohio State who played in the N.F.L. before he emerged as one of the college game’s defensive wizards.
It turned out that Freeman’s first head coaching job, announced in December, would be one of the most pressurized gigs in American sports: leading the football program at Notre Dame, which claims 11 national titles and has won at least 10 games in five consecutive seasons.