Inside the ties that connect Notre Dame and Wisconsin
· Yahoo Sports
Notre Dame and Wisconsin are two pillars of Midwestern college football. The two teams first met all the way back in 1900, and while they have only played 17 times, they share many connections throughout their history.
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Before the two kick off their seasons against each other at Lambeau Field on NBC and Peacock tonight, check out the bonds between the programs, both in the past and the present.
The Luke Fickell and Marcus Freeman connection and other coaching links
Head coaches determine so much in college football. They build their teams around their perspective on the game, and their personalities inform their team's identity.
It's no surprise that Luke Fickell and Marcus Freeman have a lot of respect for each other. When Freeman was a linebacker at Ohio State from 2004-08, Fickell was his position coach. They built a strong enough relationship that Freeman worked for Fickell from 2017 to 2020 when the latter was leading Cincinnati, serving as linebackers coach and defensive coordinator.
“The ones who have the most success like Marcus has are ones who create an identity for themselves, not just where they’ve been, whether it’s his time with us at Cincinnati or his time at Ohio State or his time under (former Ohio State coach) Jim Tressel,” Fickell said, according to the AP.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for him,” Freeman said. “I wouldn’t be in this position without the investment he made in me.”
As you might expect from a field so based in relationships, there is plenty of overlap between the coaching staffs outside of Fickell and Freeman.
Notre Dame's Mike Denbrock (offensive coordinator), Gino Guidugli (quarterbacks coach) and Mike Brown (wide receivers coach) all coached on Fickell's 2021 Cincinnati team that made it to the College Football Playoff. The Fighting Irish's offensive line coach, Joe Rudolph, was Wisconsin's offensive coordinator under Paul Chryst from 2015-20 as well as offensive line coach in 2021.
Connections through history
The links between Notre Dame and Wisconsin go back over a century and include some of the most legendary figures in college football history.
Harry Stuhldreher was the quarterback of the 1924 Notre Dame team that won the Rose Bowl and the national championship. Stuhldreher, fullback Elmer Layden and halfbacks Jim Crowley and Don Miller formed the backfield that sportswriter Grantland Rice famously dubbed "The Four Horsemen" after upsetting Army that season. Stuhldreher went on to coach Wisconsin from 1936-48 and served as athletic director from 1936-50.
Before Barry Alvarez became the winningest head coach in Wisconsin's history, he spent three seasons on Lou Holtz's Notre Dame staff. He was the linebackers coach in 1987 and the defensive coordinator from 1988-89, leading the Irish defense that finished third in the country in scoring defense and played a huge part in winning the 1988 national championship.
Alvarez moved on to become Wisconsin's head coach from 1990-2005, racking up the longest tenure and the most wins (119) in school history. He also won three Big Ten championships at Wisconsin, served as athletic director from 2004-2021 and stepped in as interim head coach in 2012 and 2014.
How to watch Wisconsin vs No. 4 Notre Dame:
- When: Sunday, September 6
- Where: Lambeau Field, Green Bay, WI
- Time: 7:30 PM ET
- TV Channel: NBC
- Live Stream: Peacock
What other college football games are on Peacock this Sunday?
Washington State vs No. 17 Washington - 4:00 PM ET on NBCSN and Peacock
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