"I want them to understand the value of hard work": Marcus Freeman reveals going extra mile to train kids while preaching his rags-to-riches story 

Despite a shaky start to the season, Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman has restored the Fighting Irish to elite status after leading them to the national championship game in January. Freeman has climbed the ranks of football, from playing for the Ohio State Buckeyes to becoming a head coach.

During Tuesday's segment of the "Wake Up The Echoes" show, the charismatic Freeman detailed how he fed on scraps during his playing days and the lesson he teaches his children from the experience.

"For about a month, I worked at Texas Roadhouse as a busboy," Marcus Freeman said. "I thought it was cool to do. Earn some little extra side money. I used to get free dinner. If you didn't eat everything off your plate and it didn't look too bad, I went to the back and said, 'Alright, there's dinner.' "And I wanted my kids to know that because they're growing up differently than I am. And you want them to. I always say, you want your kids to be better off than you were. But I also want them to understand the value of hard work. You gotta be able to explain to them, 'Daddy didn't grow up like this' and you gotta be able to work hard."

After his college football career, Freeman was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL Draft before being waived. Afterward, he was signed to the practice squads of both the Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans. He retired in 2010 when he was diagnosed with an enlarged heart condition, kickstarting his coaching career.

When Marcus Freeman revealed strict childhood

Marcus Freeman was raised in Dayton, Ohio, by his parents, Michael and Chong Freeman. He starred for Wayne High School in both football and track and field before he committed to the Ohio State Buckeyes as a top-three prospect in the state, according to ESPN.

During a 2023 episode of ESPN's "College Football" show, the Notre Dame coach detailed his strict childhood under his father, Michael Freeman, who served in the military and brought the same discipline to his children's upbringing (1:00).

"With my father being in the military," Marcus Freeman said, "we had routine, we had structure and part of those days was him waking me and my brother up at 5-something in the morning and running in place while he finished his work out and then we began our workout. Those are memories that will last forever."

Marcus Freeman is married to Joanna Herncane and the couple has six children, who regularly attend Notre Dame Fighting Irish games to support their father during the college football season.

Edited by Cabral Opiyo