Marcus Freeman remains in South Bend after leading Notre Dame to the College Football Playoff this season.

According to ESPN’s Heather Dinich, Freeman and Notre Dame agreed to a long-term contract extension, which is “reportedly a four-year extension.” The deal will keep Freeman under contract with the Fighting Irish for another six years.

Nicole Auerbach of NBC Sports reported that the extension would make Freeman “one of the highest-paid coaches in the country.”

Freeman, 38, was Notre Dame’s defensive coordinator in 2021 and took over as head coach after Brian Kelly left for LSU. Freeman’s first season got off to a rough start when the Fighting Irish were upset by Marshall in their second game of the 2022 season, but he managed to turn things around and Notre Dame finished the game 9-4.

The Fighting Irish showed improvement a season ago, finishing 10-3 with a 40-8 win over Oregon State in the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl.

The 2024 season was Freeman’s best at the helm. Notre Dame pulled off an early upset against Northern Illinois, but quickly got back into the College Football Playoff conversation by winning ten straight games to close out the season.

The 11-1 season was enough for Notre Dame to put its trust in Freeman, and he will now try to lead the Fighting Irish to their first national championship since 1988.

His first order of business after his extension will be facing No. 10 Indiana in the first round of the CFP. The 11-1 Hoosiers come into the matchup looking to prove they can compete with college football’s best after a relatively weak schedule throughout the regular season.

The winner of the matchup will face SEC champion No. 2 Georgia. If Freeman gets past Indiana and beats the Bulldogs, Notre Dame will be more than happy with Hit’s decision to give him an extension.