"He should be arrested!" - CFB fans blast ESPN writer for ditching Notre Dame HC Marcus Freeman off Top 30 coaches list

Marcus Freeman has led the Notre Dame Fighting Irish to winning records in all three of his full seasons with the program. Freeman joined the Fighting Irish after thriving as a defensive-minded coach at numerous collegiate football powerhouses.

However, despite Freeman's success at Notre Dame, ESPN writer Bill Connelly left him off a list of the Top 30 best coaches in college football. Connelly's list included some familiar names in the Top 10, notably Ohio State's Ryan Day at No. 1, Georgia's Kirby Smart at No. 3, Clemson's Dabo Swinney at No. 5, Ole Miss' Lane Kiffin at No. 7 and LSU's Brian Kelly at No. 8.

However, the absence of Notre Dame's Marcus Freeman certainly ruffled some feathers. That didn't go down well with college football fans, and they expressed their dissatisfaction on X (formerly known as Twitter).

One fan said:

"Not having Marcus Freeman on this list is criminal work! Bill should be arrested!"

Another said:

"Got to be joking me. No Marcus Freeman in the top 30!"

One fan added:

"So Purdue has the 11th best head coach in the country, but Marcus Freeman doesn't pop the top 30? This is either pathetically stupid, or it's a transparently obvious troll job."

Other fans had similar gripes with the list, but for different reasons.

One said:

"Why is #3 undefeated against #1 and #2 ???"

Another said:

"I’m a Vols fan. And I love Heupel. But Kirby is INFINITELY better than Heupel until he finds a way to beat him a couple times."

One chipped in, saying:

"Sharon Moore finished the year beating a national championship team Ohio State and a loaded Alabama team with no QB and all his stars hurt, not on list…"

Texas' Steve Sarkisian coming in at No. 29 also raised some eyebrows, considering that he's fresh off consecutive semifinal appearances in the College Football Playoff.

What's next for Marcus Freeman?

Marcus Freeman is gearing up for his fourth full season as the Notre Dame head coach. He has come a long way since losing his first game as the team's head coach in 2021, a Fiesta Bowl loss to the Oklahoma Sooners.

Since then, Freeman has guided the Fighting Irish to a 9-4 record in 2022, a 10-3 record in 2023 and a 14-2 record in 2024. He's all set for the 2025 season, which will see him attempt to bring a national title to Notre Dame.

The Fighting Irish have been active this offseason, adding players via the transfer portal and high school recruitment window. They were one win away from being national champions in 2024. They were denied by Ryan Day's Ohio State Buckeyes.

Notre Dame's first game of the 2025 season is against the Miami Hurricanes. Other key fixtures include games against Boise State, USC, Navy, Syracuse and Stanford.

Edited by Krutik Jain