Multiple Notre Dame sources won't confirm reported recruiting staff hire

New Notre Dame defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman might be bringing a football recruiting staffer with him from Cincinnati. Chad Bowden, Cincinnati’s director of recruiting, told the Cincinnati Enquirer on Tuesday that he would be joining Freeman at Notre Dame as the defensive director of recruiting for the Irish.

But the logistics of that addition to Notre Dame’s staff don’t appear to be worked out yet. Following the initial report Tuesday, multiple Notre Dame sources who would be aware of such a hire could not confirm the report with the Tribune. One Notre Dame source added that the Irish don’t currently have any job openings on the football support staff.

The role of defensive director of recruiting would be a new one for Notre Dame, so it’s unclear how that position would fit within the current structure of the recruiting staff. Creating new positions may be difficult as the university has been operating under a staff hiring freeze for the foreseeable future due to the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which the Tribune reported last year.

Bowden, 26, is the son of former Cincinnati Reds and Washington Nationals general manager Jim Bowden.

Notre Dame is scheduled to host Cincinnati for a game Oct. 2 if the previously planned schedule remains intact.