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Marcus Freeman Reveals His Biggest Regret From Notre Dame’s National Championship Loss

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Matt De Lima | Last updated Jun 16, 2025 3:54 PM ET

Notre Dame's run at the national championship last season was the closest the college football powerhouse had come to a title in nearly a dozen years. Despite being one of the most celebrated schools in the sport, the Fighting Irish haven't won a national championship since 1988, so coming so close and falling short was a significant disappointment to the fan base.

However, head coach Marcus Freeman seems to have rebuilt the program, and the Irish are expected to pick up where they left off in 2025.

Still, Freeman has regrets about what could have been and shared them on "The Joel Klatt Show" when he was asked about what he learned from the College Football Playoff national championship loss.

"In those biggest games, those biggest moments, you gotta play your best, right?" Freeman said. "You can't make mistakes versus a team like Ohio State. You think about the first drive on offense — I think it was a 19-play drive. We execute; we're physical; we score."

After the first quarter, Notre Dame had the lead, 7-0, because of the drive Freeman summarized. It was an 18-play, 75-yard drive that ate up nine minutes, 45 seconds off the clock. From the 1-yard line, quarterback Riley Leonard punched in the score.

Unfortunately, the Fighting Irish were outscored 34-16 for the rest of the game, and the Buckeyes would score 31 unanswered points.

"Defensively, we didn't play our best," Freeman continued. "And trust me, credit to Ohio State, they had some elite playmakers. They played really, really well. But, I wish we could go back, and dang it, we've got to play our best. And the outcome might still be the same, right? But there were moments in that game, I thought that's not how we have played all year long.

"So, for me, I think about that game, and I say, 'Listen, we fought until the very end.' We're down 21, I think, at half, 14 or 21, and it was an eight-point game in the fourth quarter. This group was never going to quit, ever. When I think back, I think about how I didn't prepare 'em the right way for that opportunity. What didn't I do as the head coach to make sure we were ready to play our best in that moment?

"Was the game too big? Did I make it too small? I think of many different reasons, and I want everyone in our program to think that way. What didn't I do to make sure I was prepared to take advantage of that opportunity? Because it's so hard to get there."

Throughout Freeman's lengthy response, he spoke with considerable intensity. Despite the title loss being nearly five months ago, the 39-year-old coach sounded as though he's still going through it, for better or worse.

Notre Dame kicks off their 2025 regular season with a road matchup against the Miami Hurricanes on Aug. 31 at 7:30 p.m. ET.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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