The Chicago Bears are clearly planning to be quite thorough in this head coaching cycle. The franchise has confirmed seven interviews with top candidates already and a few more still will come this week. On Sunday, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero linked the Bears with another candidate— and this one is a genunine surprise.

Reporting ahead of the wild-card slate, Pelissero said Chicago is interested in interviewing Marcus Freeman, head coach of Notre Dame, for the open head coaching job. Freeman, of course, is rather busy after he secured the Fighting Irish a berth in the College Football Playoff championship game with a win over Penn State in the semifinals last Thursday.

"I am told the team wants to interview Notre Dame's Marcus Freeman for the job," Pelissero stated on The Insiders. "Freeman is in the midst of a magical run with the Fighting Irish to the national championship game. It's obviously unlikely he would entertain NFL overtures prior to taht game, a week from tomorrow against Ohio State. But the Bears have done extensive research for months on Marcus Freeman. He is only 39 years old. Would not be a shock if at some point he at least considers going to the NFL."

As noted, the 39-year-old coach is a bit busy at the moment and the hiring cycle moves quickly. If the Bears were really willing to wait until Freeman becomes available after the national championship game, they must be very sure he's a legitimate option because few top candidates will still be available over a week from now.

Notre Dame is Freeman's first head coaching job. Previously he coached on the defensive side of the ball at Ohio State, Kent State, Purdue, and Cincinnati. In 2021 he was hired by Brian Kelly to be the defensive coordinator for the Fighting Irish and took over when Kelly left for LSU weeks before the team's bowl game. The school named him head coach after that and he's spent the last three years building Notre Dame into a national contender, culminating in this year's excellent run.

Given his rapid rise it makes sense that Freeman would enjoy some NFL attention. And that it's the Bears is less shocking than it initally appears; Freeman was drafted by Chicago in 2009, although he never played a down for the team. Furthermore the Bears have been linked to Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell during their head coaching search so the college realm is not unfamiliar this cycle.

It would be a big risk to take, but the Bears seem willing to take a swing as the Caleb Williams era gets underway.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Bears Interested in Interviewing Notre Dame's Marcus Freeman for Head Coaching Job .

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