Marcus Freeman, the head football coach of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, has a net worth of about $24 million. Notre Dame might have lost in the national championship game in the first iteration of the 12-team College Football Playoff, but the head coach is still one of the biggest names in the sport right now. In this article, we are going to take a closer look at how he came to his wealth.
Marcus Freeman's net worth in 2025 (estimate): $24 million

Reports vary on just how much Marcus Freeman is worth, but most sources, including sportskeeda.com and marca.com, suggest he is worth about $24 million. Of course, the majority of Freeman's wealth has come from his time coaching, as he has been doing that since a young age (although he is still young for a head coach at only 39 years old).
Freeman's first coaching gig was as a graduate assistant in 2010 for his alma mater, Ohio State University. After that, the former linebacker headed to Kent State to work as a linebackers coach from 2011-2012. He took that same position in 2013 for Purdue, although he was eventually promoted to co-defensive coordinator. Purdue was Freeman's big break, and his expertise, especially as a defensive mastermind, really started to show during his time in West Lafayette.
In late 2016, Freeman was hired by Cincinnati to coach linebackers and work as the defensive coordinator. By 2018, Freeman's defense was arguably the best in the nation. The team ranked first in scoring defense in back-to-back seasons. By this point, Freeman had offers to coach in the NFL and for some of the most prestigious programs in college football, but he decided to stay with Cincinnati. 247Sports named Freeman the Defensive Coordinator of the Year in 2020.
Brian Kelly was the head coach for Notre Dame in 2021, and he hired Freeman to be his defensive coordinator that year. With 11 championship claims, Notre Dame is one of the best programs in college football, so joining the staff made too much sense. Kelly left Notre Dame to coach LSU after the 2021 regular season, and Freeman took over as the 32nd head coach in program history ahead of their Fiesta Bowl matchup against Oklahoma State.
He remained the head coach for the entire 2022 season, and he coached the Fighting Irish to a 9-4 record. The team improved upon that under his tutelage in 2023 with a 10-3 record. Notre Dame won their bowl game in both of these seasons. With star players such as running back Audric Estime and quarterback Sam Hartman leaving for the NFL, Notre Dame was expected to take a step back in 2024. Those suspicions were justified when the Fighting Irish lost to Northern Illinois despite being 29.5-point betting favorites.
Notre Dame rallied, though, and that would prove to be the only loss of the regular season for Freeman's team. Notre Dame qualified for the College Football Playoff and collected wins over Indiana, Georgia, and Penn State before taking on the team Freeman played for in college (Ohio State) in the national championship game. While the Buckeyes won the title, Freeman's football expertise was still on display all season long, and he will be looked at as one of the premier college football coaches going forward. Freeman recently signed a four-year contract extension with Notre Dame that will keep him in town until 2030. Reports suggest Freeman's contract is in the range of $9 million per year.
Marcus Freeman's football career
Before Marcus Freeman became a successful football coach, he made his name as a player. The Ohio native was a standout in high school, even being named to the Parade All-American Team. The four-year varsity starter was credited with 127 tackles, four sacks, four forced fumbles, and four fumble recoveries during his senior year.
Freeman stayed local and committed to play at Ohio State. He saw limited playing time as a freshman in 2004 before redshirting because of an injury the next season. Freeman became a starting linebacker in 2006. He collected 71 tackles that season.
Freeman really broke onto the scene in 2007, though. After recording 109 tackles and 9.5 tackles for a loss, Freeman was named to the second-team All-Big Ten team. He earned that accolade for a second straight year in 2008 when he again had 9.5 tackles for a loss, although his tackle total dropped to 84.
Freeman was drafted in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears, but the team waived him before the start of the season. Freeman's deal with the Bears was worth $1.9 million over four years. The linebacker bounced around from the Buffalo Bills to the Houston Texans, but he never saw action on the field. Freeman was forced to retire because of an enlarged heart condition, but that allowed him to get into coaching at a young age.
This is everything we know about Marcus Freeman's net worth. So, were you surprised by how much he has made over his career?