There’s a history of Cincinnati influence in South Bend, including Kelly, who spent three seasons with the Bearcats before taking the Notre Dame job. A year before Kelly poached Freeman, he hired Bearcats defensive backs coach Mike Mickens, a Cincinnati alum who was a teammate of Freeman’s at Wayne High School outside of Dayton.

Last week, at a news conference before the College Football Playoff semifinals, Penn State coach James Franklin turned to his counterpart, Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman, and asked a question. “How old are you now,