Does Indiana football’s title loom over Notre Dame, Marcus Freeman? Sort of

Does Indiana football’s title loom over Notre Dame, Marcus Freeman? Sort of

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Does Indiana football’s title loom over Notre Dame, Marcus Freeman? Sort of
SOUTH BEND, IN – DECEMBER 20: Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman talks with Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti prior to the start of the CFP first round game between the Indiana Hoosiers and Notre Dame Fighting Irish on December 20, 2024 at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, IN. (Photo by Jeffrey Brown/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Indiana and Notre Dame share a strange history on the gridiron.

The two programs occupy the same state but there’s little that brings them together outside of recruiting that shared territory. The Hoosiers and Fighting Irish have met just thirty times with the first game taking place way back in 1898. Indiana’s in-state rival has always been Purdue while the Irish’s historic success built rivalries with the likes of USC, Michigan and Miami.

Indiana’s a public school and Notre Dame is private. Indiana has little football history and Notre Dame has as much as anyone. Indiana’s positioned toward the state’s southern regions while Notre Dame is about as far north as the Hoosier state gets.

Indiana’s a national champion and Notre Dame is searching for its first since 1988. Two facts that have been front of mind for Marcus Freeman, head coach of the Fighting Irish, throughout the offseason.

Freeman was asked about the Hoosiers’ national championship during an appearance on ESPN’s First Take recently, with host Stephen A. Smith noting the two schools’ proximity. Freeman praised Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti’s work in Bloomington before sharing more thoughts.

“It doesn’t happen by luck,” Freeman said. “It’s work, it’s put in. And now I don’t love that being up the road a couple hours. We’ve gotta make sure we’re putting our program in a position to do that. But you’ve gotta take your hat off and give credit where credit’s due.”

Freeman got a firsthand look at Cignetti’s program during the latter’s first year at Indiana, sending the Hoosiers home in the first round of the 2024 College Football Playoff. Indiana ended up using that loss as fuel, returning several starters and going 16-0 in 2025.

Freeman already contended with lofty expectations when he took over Notre Dame ahead of the 2022 season. An in-state program beating the Fighting Irish to the punch can only heighten them.

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