“History is written by conquerors”: Riley Leonard makes Marcus Freeman’s eye-catching message public after Notre Dame’s win

Marcus Freeman's Notre Dame Fighting Irish booked their spot in the national championship game after beating the Penn State Nittany Lions 27-24 in the Orange Bowl on Thursday. Freeman became the first Black and Asian American head coach to lead a team to the FBS national championship game.

The Fighting Irish were down 10-3 at halftime and during his postgame news conference, quarterback Riley Leonard revealed what Freeman told his players in the dressing room that sparked the comeback.

"History is written by conquerors, we're holding the pen," Leonard said of Freeman's message to the team.

Marcus Freeman reveals how he motivates his team

During an in-house interview on Wednesday that Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman conducted with former NFL star Robert Griffin III, the Fighting Irish coach spoke about a viral video of him motivating his players before a game.

"You know, I think at that moment, if I knew that's what it takes every single week to win, trust me, I would do that," Freeman said. "But I thought at that moment, that's what they needed from me because I could feel the pressure.

"We had two or three freshmen starting their first game. So, I always walk out in front of the O-line. I was a quarterback. You know those O-linemen protect you. I feel a little bit of protection when I'm around those big O-linemen."

Freeman has become renowned for his motivational techniques like the one he used in the Orange Bowl against the Penn State Nittany Lions. During his in-house interview, he told an anecdote of how he found himself hyping up his team before a big game.

"As we were walking into that stadium, it was rocking, I mean, a crazy atmosphere. I almost wanted to take a little bit of that pressure off of them," Freeman said. "So, that's why I turned around and tried to start getting them going. I don't know what I said. You know, it's just one of those modes where you start saying stuff and yelling and screaming but I was trying to say 'Put it on me.'

"All week I tried to show them what the atmosphere was gonna be like, the environment. I said, 'I want you to know exactly what it's gonna be like.' And I remember turning around and I did say this, 'We've been here before. This is exactly where we thought we were gonna be.' It was one of those cool moments with your players."

Next up for Marcus Freeman and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish is a clash against either the Texas Longhorns or the Ohio State Buckeyes who meet in the Cotton Bowl Classic on Friday.