On the first day of 2021, then-coach Luke Fickell took his University of Cincinnati Bearcats football team to Atlanta to face the Georgia Bulldogs in the Peach Bowl. Still coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic,

There’s a history of Cincinnati influence in South Bend, including Kelly, who spent three seasons with the Bearcats before taking the Notre Dame job. A year before Kelly poached Freeman, he hired Bearcats defensive backs coach Mike Mickens, a Cincinnati alum who was a teammate of Freeman’s at Wayne High School outside of Dayton.

The No. 7 Notre Dame Fighting Irish take on the No. 8 Ohio State Buckeyes on January 20 in the College Football Playoff national title game. Notre Dame's run has been incredible as the Irish have wins over No.

Notre Dame football head coach Marcus Freeman keeps receiving praise. Brian Urlacher is the latest to compliment his abilities.