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This is a special episode CEO Series for me because we went to Notre Dame Stadium where I played football with my brother during their undefeated 2012 season. We went to my old stomping grounds to sit down with head coach Marcus Freeman and talk about leadership and how in many ways he is the CEO of their amazing program.
Below are some highlights from that conversation, which have been edited for length and clarity. Watch the full video above.
Coach as general manager
“A CEO heads a large company, and my company happens to be one Our Lady football. Ultimately, you are responsible for every decision that affects the people in the program and the results on the field. So you do not make every decision, but you are responsible for it. It’s vital to make sure you understand. Throughout my coaching profession, I have gained the biggest satisfaction from watching the success of the players you have worked with.
A video of the celebration that went viral after he was hired as head coach
“It was a blur. But I remember walking out that door and seeing the band going crazy – all I wanted to do was hug them. It wasn’t a speech. It was a probability to rejoice and be with your boys, right? I tell all of them the time: I’m a member of the team, I could also be the captain, but I understand what you are going through, I’m fighting with you, they respect it and understand that leaving home is a moment I’ll always remember and will cherish perpetually.
The meaning of his mantra “Choose Hard”
“It all started a few years ago when I was in the Notre Dame gym practicing while our players were under a lot of pressure. I remember thinking that you can choose to do everything, or you can choose to keep going as hard as you can. And then a thought occurred to me: “Choose hard.” We hung the sign you see when you enter this building that says “Choose Strong.” Because when you step on the field at Notre Dame, you have to have that attitude. We will do it select firmly today in practice, select firmly today at meetings, select firmly at the gym today. And for gamers, you will be a challenge in the classroom, right? You’ll be in a classroom with some of the smartest people in the world. And it’s hard, but in the end you made the choice to come here select firmlyaccept it and know that the rewards for making difficult decisions every day can’t be found anywhere else.”
Problem solving philosophy
“When a team doesn’t win, a lot of people say, trust the process. My mantra is: fix the process. I spend a lot of time evaluating everything we did. Why aren’t we playing better? What do we do schematically? Is there anything our players don’t understand? Losses happen and are part of life. But they hurt. As a leader, you don’t want to have too many of them. Fix it urgently.”
Retaining players in the era of the transfer portal
“Look, if you’re the CEO of a company, you have to pay your employees, right? Now, if they can go somewhere else and make a lot more money, regardless of the type of business you run, they are likely to leave. So we need to make sure that our players can get the most out of their reputation, image and likeness opportunities. That’s important, but what else keeps them at Notre Dame. And you have to believe it’s your culture. You have to believe that this is how they are treated. Do they enjoy being a part of your program? This is a message for me and other coaches. Let’s take care of this as much as we motivate them, even though we are demanding, we do not humiliate them. We want them to enjoy being a part of this team and all the opportunities the University of Notre Dame provides.”
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