Marcus Freeman accomplished something at Notre Dame that we haven’t seen since the 1940s

One storyline that wasn’t talked about nearly enough following Notre Dame’s massive 51-14 victory over Navy last weekend was head coach Marcus Freeman entering the record books. He earned a school-record-matching 10th win over a ranked team in his first three years leading the program. That is especially impressive when you think about some of the head coaches the team has had in their history.

Some of the names that quickly come to mind include Knute Rockne, Lou Holtz, Ara Parseghian, and Brian Kelly. Coach Freeman tied the record that was previously held by Frank Leahy, who coached Notre Dame from 1941-53. During that stretch, the Irish program went 107-13-9, had six undefeated seasons, and won four national championships.

So far during the Freeman tenure, Notre Dame has gone 26-9 overall, and has won six straight games to date. There is still a lot for Coach Freeman to prove, but there is also a lot to build on. The Irish have done a better job competing against the top teams on the schedule, putting together a 10-4 overall record against top 25 teams.

That’s in comparison to what the program did under Brian Kelly previously, finishing just 23-24 in his career against top 25 opponents in 12 years in South Bend. Since leaving for LSU, Kelly has also accumulated just a 4-7 record against top 25 teams with the Tigers.

While Coach Freeman does still need to erase the occasional blunder against an inferior team, there is a new feeling with Irish fans. For the first time in a long time, there is a trust that Notre Dame is able to compete against the very best teams they play. That is called progress, and it can’t be undersold.