SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Marcus Freeman is a bit of a football purist, his roots at Ohio State as a player for Jim Tressel and his coaching evolution carved from his own rugged determination, charisma and time spent around Luke Fickell and Brian Kelly, among others.
So, Freeman's thoughts on the arrival of legendary, record-setting former NFL head coach Bill Belichick to the collegiate game -- for the first time ever, at age 72 -- are pertinent.
"You know, I've got a lot of respect for what Coach Belichick has done for the game of football; the success he's had at the NFL level is unprecedented," Freeman said Sunday.
"It's tremendous for the game of football, period. To have somebody who has had so much success (now) in college football, in a conference we obviously play multiple crossover games, it's amazing.
"He'll do great things in college, the same way he did in the NFL. I look forward to seeing his success at North Carolina and their football program."
Freeman, though, is maniacally competitive. Battles among the staff, card games or otherwise, or his fitness routine are not delicate items.
In other words, don't take the respect of a devoted football lifer -- Freeman -- for another football lifer -- Belichick -- as anything more than professional respect.
UNC, it seems, is casting a narrative that it now can be an NFL pipeline under Belichick, a former NFL executive in a similar collegiate role and impending additions with NFL experience. Never mind that Mack Brown, Larry Porter and others sent multiple NFL quarterbacks, running backs and wideouts, among additional players, into the NFL in the past five years.
Freeman owns his own NFL experience and is overseeing an Notre Dame roster back in the College Football Playoff for the first time since 2020 and numbering double-digit NFL prospects.
"As far as every coach, our job is to make sure your sons are prepared, more prepared for the NFL because of the time they spent in our program," Freeman said. "That's a part of what our job is. Not only to help us win football games, but also to prepare them to reach their full potential as a football player.
"And if that means that they're ready to go to the NFL and have a long NFL career, then that's great. But our job is to make sure that they are the most complete football player that they can be in terms of because of the time they spent with us in our football program."