Jason Whitlock suggests Marcus Freeman needs a Deion Sanders persona to get national respect

Jason Whitlock has a suggestion for Marcus Freeman after the Notre Dame Fighting Irish were excluded from the College Football Playoff. The analyst wrote on X (formerly Twitter),

"Serious question: If Marcus Freeman wore a big gold chain, adopted a flashy nickname and had rappers on the sideline, how different would the conversation about Notre Dame be this morning? Black men gotta wear the clown suit to win popular support. Sad."

Whitlock's words seemed to be a thinly veiled dig at Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders. Sanders is known for his fashion sense, trademark nickname, and the presence of prominent figures at Buffaloes games.

Whitlock suggests that Marcus Freeman adopt the Coach Prime persona to earn respect across the country. It comes after the Notre Dame Fighting Irish missed out on the College Football Playoffs despite winning ten consecutive games to end the season.

Notre Dame missed out on the playoffs despite Marcus Freeman's campaign

Marcus Freeman made a final argument for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish before the Ohio State Buckeyes versus the Indiana Hoosiers game. Freeman said,

"I think the ultimate question is: 'Who's the best team now? And that's what the playoff committee wants, and I'm sure that's what college football fans want. I think anytime you look at one single data point, it's going to sway you one way or another."

He continued,

"But the committee made it clear on Tuesday that the debate and focus have been on Notre Dame and Alabama. I might disagree with their decision to flip us, but it shows the debate isn't Notre Dame (and) BYU (or) Miami, it's Notre Dame and Alabama."

The Indiana Hoosiers ultimately beat the Ohio State Buckeyes, and Notre Dame was bumped out of the playoff picture. Alabama and Miami made it in, and Freeman's troops will be left with a bowl game as a consolation. It ends the program's hopes of reaching the finals and avenging last season's loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Notre Dame is the first team out of the playoffs. They're followed by BYU (11-2) with the Cougars ultimately paying the price for their Big 12 championship loss to Texas Tech on Saturday.