Brian Mason Expected To Leave For The Indianapolis Colts
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Irish Breakdown has learned that Notre Dame special teams coach Brian Mason has accepted the special teams coordinator position for the Indianapolis Colts. Mason spent the last season with Fighting Irish after serving for the previous four seasons at Cincinnati.
Mason was not planning on leaving Notre Dame, but the Colts were a unique situation for him. According to a source close to the situation, Mason - a native of Zionsville - viewed the chance to get closer to home and coach for the team he grew up rooting for as too good to pass up. His wife, Rachel, is also an Indianapolis area native, which allows the Mason's, who have young children, to get closer to their family. It was a job that was just too unique to pass up, as Mason is also a huge Colts fan.
After being informed that Mason was going to interview for the Colts job, Notre Dame quickly made it known that it was willing to give Mason whatever raise needed to keep him in South Bend. I'm told this wasn't a money move for Mason, who is likely to make about the same for the Colts that he was already making at Notre Dame, and less than he would have received with the pay raise offer from Notre Dame.
For Mason, his fondness for Notre Dame and potential for a pay raise was trumped by the family pull to the Indianapolis area and his passion for the Colts.
Mason did a tremendous job for Notre Dame in 2022, winning the Special Teams Coach of the Year honors from FootballScoop. Notre Dame finished the year ranked 6th in special teams efficiency according to the Fremeau Efficiency Index. Notre Dame tied for the nation lead with seven blocked kicks last season, all of which were punts. That mark set a Notre Dame program record.
Replacing Mason won't be easy, but expected head coach Marcus Freeman to work quickly. You can expect Freeman to already have a short list to quickly work through as he looks to get his staff up to speed by the time spring practice starts on March 22nd.
With Mason off to the NFL, Freeman will be replacing his third assistant coach of the offseason. Mason joins former offensive coordinator Tommy Rees and offensive line coach Harry Hiestand as departures from last season's staff. Rees left for Alabama while Hiestand retired.
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