One of the more interesting unofficial rivalries in college sports these days is Notre Dame and Texas A&M, thanks in large part to longtime friends Marcus Freeman and Mike Elko. Elko was the Golden Domers’ defensive coordinator not all that long ago, and the Irish and Aggies head coaches share that background. The rivalry included a home-and-home series with each school winning on the road. Now, with the two teams not expected to play each other any time soon, the rivalry has morphed into a recruiting feud. It’s even birthed one of the more ridiculous rumors circulating on the web this month.
The Twitter account Message Board Geniuses showed this particular rumor, which started on ND message boards not long after the Aggies won their recruiting showdown with Notre Dame. That rumor claimed to have inside sources on why Texas A&M secured the commitment of 5-star linebacker Kaden Henderson earlier this week, despite having once been considered a heavy Fighting Irish lean.
“So I have some friends that are A&M alumni who are involved with the school,” the post began. “They said that Elko told Henderson that he has firsthand knowledge that this will be Freeman’s last year.
Apparently, Elko and Freeman share the same agent, which is where he got the info about Freeman from. Hopefully this isn’t true,” the Notre Dame fan added.
Trusted sources tell MBG that Mike Elko has confirmed that Marcus Freeman will be leaving #NotreDame at the end of this season. pic.twitter.com/G9oe6ki9VJ
— Message Board Geniuses (@BoardGeniuses) June 20, 2026
Marcus Freeman exit rumor shows Notre Dame football recruiting feud is turning ridiculous
It’s not that believing negative recruiting played a part in Elko scoring Kaden Henderson’s commitment is all that odd. Negative recruiting happens all the time. The Fighting Irish coaches likely do the same thing in different ways. What makes this “rumor” ridiculous is the idea that Freeman would tell Elko, or anyone else not located in South Bend, that he was leaving after the 2026 season.
There is, of course, also the little issue that, at the moment, there are no openings available. Is the idea that despite the Notre Dame coach showing no interest in every opening over the last few years, he’s suddenly going to take the next job that comes open?
Marcus might eventually decide he’s outstayed his welcome in South Bend. It might even be this offseason if his Fighting Irish win a national title and the right job comes along. What makes this kind of “inside sources” talk nonsense is that no one knows what will happen in June, months ahead of the regular season.
What this post does show is that there are plenty of people outside the Notre Dame periphery who believe Marcus Freeman will leave at some point, and it’s likely sooner rather than later. That is some negative recruiting that’s going on. It's just not a rumor that should be believed as confirmed.
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