Notre Dame’s special teams brilliance in 2022 put Brian Mason in the spotlight.
The Irish nominated their special teams coordinator for the Broyles Award, but he didn’t make the 15-man semifinalist cut for college football’s assistant coach of the year. Mason did, however, use his lone season at Notre Dame as a springboard to the NFL. Mason will join the Indianapolis Colts as special teams coordinator under new head coach Shane Steichen, a source told Inside ND Sports on Saturday morning.
Per the source, Mason said he loved his Notre Dame experience but that a position with the Colts was a dream job for the Zionsville, Ind., native. Salary reportedly did not come into play.
Mason was named FootballScoop’s 2022 Special Teams Coordinator of the Year, an award voted on by fellow coaches. Notre Dame led the FBS with seven blocked punts last season. The Irish had only blocked six total kicks (punts, field goals or PATs) in the previous five seasons combined.
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Notre Dame also finished ranked No. 6 in the special teams Fremeau Efficiency Index ratings for the 2022 season. The special teams FEI ratings take into account kickoff return, kickoff, punt return, punt, and field goal efficiency. The Irish had only finished in the top 15 of the special teams FEI ratings once prior in the previous 15 years.
Mason, 36, will be making the leap to the NFL after 16 seasons of coaching college football, starting as a student assistant at Division III Denison University in Granville, Ohio.
Mason joined head coach Marcus Freeman’s first staff in January 2022. Prior to working together at Notre Dame, the two overlapped for seven seasons at three different schools: Cincinnati (four seasons), Purdue (two) and Kent State (one). Mason spent five seasons at Cincinnati — the last four as special teams coordinator — prior to coming to Notre Dame.
Freeman will now need to fill an assistant coaching opening for the fourth time this season. Notre Dame has already promoted tight ends coach Gerad Parker to offensive coordinator following the Alabama departure of offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Tommy Rees and hired Gino Guidugli as quarterbacks coach. Notre Dame is also expected to name Joe Rudolph as its next offensive line coach to replace the retired Harry Hiestand.
The coaching carousel might not slow down either. FootballScoop reported early Friday that Notre Dame wide receivers coach Chansi Stuckey and safeties coach Chris O’Leary were candidates for jobs with the Baltimore Ravens.
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