Football * Notre Dame head coach rumor mill (Tues. Nov. 29 3:30 p.m. ET update) *

MikeSinger · Nov 30, 2021

Hello Notre Dame fans, welcome to the rumor mill, where I’ll be compiling everything related to Brian Kelly leaving the Fighting Irish for the LSU job and who Jack Swarbrick may look to replace him with. This post will be updated often so make sure to keep it bookmarked.

CLICK HERE for the 1am Tuesday update

This is a rumor mill. This is where you get the gossip and what the industry experts are saying.

Make sure to sign up for our newsletter/breaking news alerts so you get emailed whenever there's a new hire. CLICK HERE

*** Tuesday, Nov. 29 ***

3:30 p.m. ET update

— The Notre Dame players and recruits have been pushing hard on social media for Jack Swarbrick to elevate defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman to head coach. It is very common in coaching searches that the players and recruits want to hire from within as it keeps continuity. Notre Dame's football program is rolling, and keeping continuity is why I believe Freeman is a legit candidate for the Notre Dame job. One source I spoke with today thought it was a positive that Swarbrick didn't name an interim coach today with some of the logic being that if Freeman was the guy Swarbrick wanted to hire, then they wouldn't slap an interim tag on him or anyone else currently on staff. I'm told there's "momentum" behind Freeman right now.

— It was tough to gauge what's real and what's just the company line during Swarbrick's press conference. A lot of what he said during the presser would leave you to believe he plans to have a full, in-depth search rather than just going in-house, but again, I don't know what he was being truthful about. One thing I am told is that Freeman has other suitors. I've already reported that the Duke head coach opening is a real opportunity and so is the LSU defensive coordinator position. The interest in Freeman doesn't stop there either.

— If it is Freeman, I expect him to keep as much of the current coaching staff intact as possible. Rees could get more control of the offense, Mickens could get a promotion to pass game coordinator and Elston could become the defensive coordinator.

— Per CBS Sports' Dennis Dodd: ND will apparently wait for Luke Fickell, apparently the No 1 choice. Jack Swarbrick suggested he will not name an interim. Assts being told to stay on the road. Strong Catholic ties with Fickell. ND wants renewed bond with traditional Midwest Catholic high schools in recruiting.

—One source tells me that Freeman will have a meeting with Swarbrick on Wednesday. That should be interesting.

— There have been reports that LSU is going after Freeman, which I've reported too, as well as Kelly being in pursuit of Rees, per Matt Fortuna of The Athletic.

— Some people I've spoken with have expressed concern about strength coach Matt Balis leaving for LSU with Kelly. He is a key member of the Notre Dame staff who the players love.

— Here are the odds for who will be Notre Dame's next head coach, via SportsLine:

Marcus Freeman Even
Luke Fickell +200
Matt Campbell +500
Pat Fitzgerald +900
Mark Stoops +1000
Jeff Brohm +1500
Matt Rhule +1800
Bob Stoops +2000
Urban Meyer +2500

— Football Scoop had an update on Notre Dame's coaching situation today, which included a note that Rees had NFL coordinator and college head coach opportunities. I had heard behind the scenes that Rees was intrigued with going back to the NFL. That could be something to keep an eye on. The report also mentioned that Brian Polian is the "frontrunner" for FCS Lafayette. It hasn't been a secret in ND circles that Polian has been gunning for a head coach position for a while.

— Speaking of Polian, he was supposed to have lunch with cornerback pledge Jaden Mickey, but that was cancelled last minute. Elston was going to have a home visit tonight with Aiden Gobaira, but that was cancelled as well.

— One trusted industry source of mine called me today and told me that LSU contacted Kelly a while back, but Kelly wasn't interested and turned it down. Then apparently Kelly went to Notre Dame to ask for a big investment in facility upgrades, such as a football-only dining hall, but that was quickly turned down by the ND brass. When LSU got back in contact with Kelly, he bolted. In reading in between the lines here, Kelly wanted to make changes to Notre Dame to make it more like a football factory, but that's not ND, so he left for a football factory. Take all of that with a grain of salt. This is a rumor mill after all so I figured I'd share.

—Below is the content from our guys from Jack Swarbrick's press conference this morning. Tyler Horka was also at The Gug today to take in the sights and sounds from Kelly leaving Notre Dame this morning after a meeting with the team.