"Your job can't be to keep everyone happy": Marcus Freeman reveals tough calls he needs to make as HC while being impartial to players

Being the head coach of a college football team is a challenging job, given the role blends fame and authority with responsibility and risk. Ask Notre Dame's Marcus Freeman, who suffered a big blow in the 2025 CFP national championship game against the Ohio State Buckeyes on Jan 20 at the Mercedes-Benz stadium. Despite the notable loss, the contributions of players - including QB Riley Leonard, RBs Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price - were quite significant. Freeman says it is necessary to make the right choice for the sake of the team; otherwise, it will create chaos.

The 39-year-old coach - who had a virtual interaction with Greg McElroy of ESPN on Thursday - discussed the 2024 season and keeping players happy when surrounded by a rotation dilemma.

“It's one of the ultimate challenges of a coach, right? Is that your job can't be to keep everybody happy? We understand that your job is to do what's best to help us win," Freeman saod to McElroy on Thursday. [Timestamp - 13:40] "But your role, whatever it's defined to be, is so critical to helping us achieve this victory, and so we have to, more importantly than to keep everybody happy.”

Freeman asserted that it is more about selecting the right players - regardless of their face value - but based on their stats and contributions.

“We have to get every person and every player in this football program, committed to team glory, committed to that joy that we achieve when you you're able to win a football game, and your role, whatever it is determined for that week, is so critical for us to achieve that feeling of team glory, and so that, to me, is the challenge more anything is to say, okay, how can not keep him happy?

"But how can we make sure this guy knows that your role is so critical for us to achieve this ultimate goal of team glory, which is more important in any way, right? More important to any person, more important in any role, your team's glory is what we want to achieve,” he added.

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Marcus Freeman enjoys a loaded RB room in 2025

One of the crucial aspects of Notre Dame's success from last season was the running game. They managed to run the ball relentlessly against each and every opponent they faced in 2024. The squad was led by Jeremiyah Love, who recorded 163 carries for 1,125 yards and scored 17 touchdowns.

Similarly, when it comes to Jadarian Price, he recorded 120 carries for 746 yards and scored seven touchdowns. Expect nothing more this season but a polished gameplay of what the Fighting Irish had showcased in 2024 and a big goal of winning the national championship.