Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman has been investigated regarding a battery accusation from an alleged altercation at his son’s high school wrestling meet.
The alleged incident occurred on Saturday, Jan. 3, at Mishawaka High School in Indiana. According to the South Bend Tribune, New Prairie High School assistant coach Chris Fleeger filed a police report against Freeman this week.
Advertisement
The report has been turned over to prosecutors and, as of Sunday, no determination has been made regarding possible charges.
The altercation allegedly took place after Vinny Freeman’s match against Hanover Central senior Israel Sinnott, which Vinny lost. As Vinny was escorted off the mat and out of the gym by Marcus and Penn head coach Brad Harper, Fleeger allegedly began exchanging words with the group.
As Marcus Freeman walked through the doorway into the hallway, physical contact allegedly occurred between Marcus Freeman and Fleeger, but police did not disclose the extent of the alleged contact. Once in the hallway, Fleeger and Marcus Freeman’s wife, Joanna, engaged in a shouting match before local law enforcement and Mishawaka school officials separated the two groups.
Notre Dame said in a statement on Sunday that video evidence “fully exonerates” Freeman. Vinny Freeman is the oldest of the Freemans’ six children.
“Vinny Freeman, head coach Marcus Freeman’s son, was verbally accosted during and after his wrestling match by a local wrestling coach,” Notre Dame said in a statement. “Marcus and Joanna Freeman intervened and removed Vinny from the situation. At no point did Coach Freeman physically engage with anyone. We believe that the police report, which includes video evidence, fully exonerates Coach Freeman and makes clear these accusations are totally unfounded.”
Freeman, who turned 40 on Saturday, recently completed his fifth season at Notre Dame. The Irish are 43-12 in his time with the school and went 10-2 in 2025 before being jumped by Miami in the final set of College Football Playoff rankings to miss the postseason.
Freeman has been mentioned as a potential candidate for NFL jobs even after he said he’s staying at Notre Dame for the 2026 season. A Sunday morning report from the NFL Network said that NFL teams are still looking at Freeman. Eight teams have head coaching vacancies.