Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman Clarifies Comments About OSU Academics

Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman clarified his comment about Ohio State’s academics, saying in a follow-up interview that he would never disrespect his alma mater.

Speaking Tuesday on 97.1 The Fan with former Buckeye teammates Bobby Carpenter and Anthony Schlegel, Freeman said that he did not disparage Ohio State’s academic prowess in an interview with CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd. He claimed that he was misquoted by Dodd and that “key words and context” were missing from the viral quote.

“I wanted to set the record straight in that I was misquoted by Dennis Dodd in this article, and key words and context were missing from the quote that upset a lot of people that I care about,” Freeman said, per The Columbus Dispatch. “I’m very proud of my two degrees from Ohio State. I would never discredit the quality of education those degrees represented.”

The quote in question emerged in a CBS Sports interview over the weekend, in which Freeman seemed to imply that Ohio State players weren’t required to meet the same academic demands as those that are expected of his Notre Dame players.

“If you don’t go to class [at places like that]?” Freeman said rhetorically during the CBS interview. “Okay, take some online classes, show up for your appointments. At Notre Dame, you’re forced every day to go to class.”

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Speaking Wednesday on 97.1 The Fan, Freeman explained that he would never say that Ohio State players don’t go to class, implying that the original CBS Sports story left out the word “if” at the beginning of his quote.

“The only reason Ohio State and Cincinnati were referenced was because they are large schools with a large student body in comparison to Notre Dame, which is a small school with 8,500 students,” Freeman added, per Ashton Pollard of On3. “That’s why it was important for me to reach out to you. I wanted to make sure what I said was accurately reported.

“If Marcus Freeman says ‘You don’t go to class at places like that,’ that changes the entire narrative… So that’s what I wanted to make sure I get cleared up. I would never disrespect Ohio State. I would never say you don’t go to class.”

The current version of Freeman’s interview with Dodd does include the word “if.” An earlier, archived version of the story begins the quote with “You don’t go to class [at places like that]?” 

Freeman continued, saying he didn’t believe that he’d said anything disparaging about Ohio State in the CBS Sports interview until James Laurinaitis, his former Buckeyes teammate who is now on the Notre Dame coaching staff, told him Tuesday about the stir that the quote had caused on social media.

“I would never disrespect Ohio State,” Freeman told Carpenter and Schlegel. “I would never say you don’t go to class. I went to class. I’m sure you did. We made sure we went to class. I would never say that and never disrespect my alma mater.”

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