Marcus Freeman and his wife, Joanna. Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Notre Dame football head coach Marcus Freeman has had his wife, Joanna Freeman, by his side for every step of his gridiron journey.
Marcus, 38, and Joanna met during Marcus’ time at The Ohio State University, where he was a star linebacker from 2004 to 2008. According to Yahoo! Sports, the two were introduced by Marcus’ best friend, Calvin Pruitt, while Marcus and Joanna lived in the same Columbus apartment complex.
At the time, Joanna was studying at nearby Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio. She would go on to become a news reporter at WBNS-Channel 10 in Columbus before she and Marcus started their family together.
Marcus was drafted in the fifth round of the 2009 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears — and would later sign to the practice squads of the Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans that same year — though he never saw any NFL game action.
Courtesy of Marcus Freeman/Instagram Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman has quite the impressive squad off the field, too. Freeman, 38, who became the head football coach at Notre Dame in December 2021, married his wife, Joanna Freeman, in 2010. The couple met during Marcus’ time at The Ohio State University, where Marcus was a […]
His coaching career began as a graduate assistant at Ohio State before seeing stops at Kent State University, Purdue University and the University of Cincinnati. Marcus was named Notre Dame’s head coach in December 2021.
Along the way, Joanna has been there for all of it — including the Freemans becoming the parents of six children together: son Vinny, 17, daughter Siena, 12, son Gino, 11, son Nico, 9, daughter Capri, 7, and son Rocco, 6.
For a full timeline of Marcus and Joanna’s relationship, keep reading.
2007
Marcus and Freeman welcomed their first child, son Vinny. Now a junior at Penn High School in Mishawaka, Indiana, Vinny plays safety for the school’s football team He is also an accomplished wrestler, making an official visit to Cornell University in August 2024.
2010
The couple got married just months before Freeman’s coaching journey began as an assistant at his alma mater, Ohio State.
2012
Marcus and Joanna welcomed their first daughter, Siena, while Marcus was the linebackers coach at Kent State University.
Courteys of Marcus Freeman/Instagram
2013
The couple’s second son, Gino, was born while Marcus was the linebackers coach at Purdue University.
By July 2018, Marcus already had both Gino and Vinny following in his footsteps. “It’s officially football season for the Freeman’s,” Marcus posted via Instagram, showing the brothers wearing football helmets and posing with their father.
2015
Marcus and Joanna welcomed their son, Nico, while Marcus was still working at Purdue. He would become the defensive coordinator at the University of Cincinnati in 2017.
Before their teams square off in the Orange Bowl, Penn State head coach James Franklin admitted Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman is living his follicle fantasy. During a Wednesday, January 8, press conference ahead of the game on Thursday night, Franklin, 52, revealed football wasn’t the only thing on his mind when the two […]
“Happy 4th birthday to our Nico!” Marcus shared via Instagram in 2019, showing off a picture from a birthday celebration that included then-Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell.
2017
The Freemans welcomed their second daughter, Capri, into the world.
In a picture shared by Marcus via Instagram, all four of Capri’s siblings smiled and posed with their baby sister shortly after her birth.
“Welcome to this world and our family Capri!!” Marcus wrote.
Courteys of Marcus Freeman/Instagram
2018
Marcus and Joanna’s sixth baby, son Nico, was born shortly before the holidays.
“Merry Christmas from the Freeman Crew,” Marcus shared via Instagram in December 2018, showing off his entire family smiling in front of a fireplace full of stockings.
2020
Marcus celebrated the couple’s 10th wedding anniversary with a slideshow of images from their life together.
“Celebrating 10 years of being married to the love of my life and the glue to the Freeman family,” Marcus wrote via Instagram. “Happy anniversary Jo!”
2021
The entire Freeman family was on hand when Marcus signed a contract to become the 30th head coach in Notre Dame history.
“My family and I want to thank everyone for their overwhelming support,” Marcus wrote via Instagram. “This is a special community and we’re blessed to remain a part of it. To my guys — let’s go get this win! Go Irish!”
2023
Marcus celebrated Mother’s Day with a picture of Joanna and his mother, Chong Freeman.
Happy Mother’s Day to all of the amazing Moms out there, today we celebrate you!” he shared via Instagram. “I’m especially grateful for these two special women — my wife, Joanna, and my Mom!”
Courteys of Marcus Freeman/Instagram
2025
Joanna and all six kids celebrated on the field with Marcus after Notre Dame defeated Georgia in the Sugar Bowl, earning them a trip to the College Football Playoff semifinals.
