Report: Bengals' Al Golden Hired as Notre Dame DC Under Marcus Freeman

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish reportedly have their next defensive coordinator.

Notre Dame is expected to hire Cincinnati Bengals linebackers coach Al Golden for the position, according to Pete Sampson of The Athletic, who noted, "Golden had been the top target for weeks, but the NFL playoffs complicated Notre Dame's pursuit." Minnesota defensive coordinator Joe Rossi and Boston College defensive coordinator Tem Lukabu were also candidates, per Sampson.

Golden's Bengals lost to the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl LVI on Sunday.

While Golden will be the defensive coordinator, head coach Marcus Freeman should be heavily involved on that side of the ball. He was the defensive coordinator at Cincinnati and Notre Dame and was a star linebacker at Ohio State before being drafted into the NFL in 2009.

Golden was an assistant coach for the Detroit Lions from 2016 through 2019 before joining the Bengals, but much of his coaching experience comes at the collegiate level.

He was a linebackers coach at Boston College and his alma mater, Penn State, early in his career. He then became the defensive coordinator for Virginia before ascending to the head coaching ranks at Temple from 2006 through 2010.

The Owls went 27-34 during his tenure but showed steady improvement from 1-11 in his first season to a combined 17-8 in his final two seasons. That landed him the head coaching position at Miami, and the Hurricanes went 32-25 during his five seasons from 2011 to 2015.

Miami fired him during the 2015 campaign following a 58-0 loss to Clemson.

His NFL tenure followed, and he helped lead the Bengals to a Super Bowl appearance last season. Linebackers such as Logan Wilson and Germaine Pratt were key parts of a defensive unit that stood out while holding Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs to three points in the second half and overtime of the AFC Championship Game.

Golden goes from their linebackers coach to being in charge of Notre Dame's defense as the Fighting Irish look for double-digit wins for the sixth season in a row.

It will be challenging right out of the gate with a matchup against Ohio State, which has potential Heisman Trophy candidates in quarterback C.J. Stroud, wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba and running back TreVeyon Henderson. Notre Dame also faces Clemson and USC in 2022.

How the defense holds up under Golden will play a large factor in whether Notre Dame can compete for a College Football Playoff spot with a difficult slate.