Mike Martin makes his way to South Bend after helping create some very talented teams for as a member of the Detroit Lions, filling the GM role for Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame football following the departure of Chad Bowden.
Photo by The Irish Tribune
The hiring process for Notre Dame's GM position had been a bit of a roller coaster for Freeman and the staff. It started with the former GM, Chad Bowden, who left somewhat surprisingly just a few days after the season had concluded. To make the loss worse, it was to Notre Dame's biggest rival, the USC Trojans. His departure marked the beginning of a long-winded hiring process that eventually led Notre Dame to Mike Martin. To begin the search, North Carolina's Patrick Suddes emerged as a target, but Notre Dame quickly pivoted to Texas Tech's James Blanchard. Blanchard had become a popular name when it came to recruiting, making him a prime target for Notre Dame, and a target the fanbase could get behind. The deal seemed to be on the brink of being done before Blanchard declined, leaving Notre Dame and its staff to continue the search again. That led to rumblings that Notre Dame was to pursue Auburn's director of recruiting, Kenyatta Watson, but nothing ever materialized. After all of this, Freeman finally found the man who would help him build the roster of Notre Dame football teams in the future, Mike Martin.
Martin has a long history in the NFL, but his football career started at the college level. From 1999 to 2002, he was a defensive back at Vanderbilt, where he was a finalist for the SEC scholar-athlete of the year. Directly following his college career, Martin took his first steps in the NFL as an intern with the Tennessee Titans for one year. He then landed his first prominent job in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. His time with the Buccaneers lasted four seasons, working as a personnel assistant, a pro scout, and then a southeast region scout. Martin then moved on to the Houston Texans, where he would spend 11 years. He spent most of those 11 serving as a college scout before receiving a promotion going into his last year with the Texans. That promotion made him the assistant director of all college recruiting for the team. His path then led him to the Carolina Panthers, where he spent a short time as an area scout before eventually landing in Detroit. With the Detroit Lions, Martin worked as the director of scouting advancement for four seasons. In those four seasons, the Lions' roster saw a dramatic turnaround with the talent on the field. The Lions were considered to be one of the worst teams in the NFL for quite a while before Head Coach Dan Campbell and his staff arrived. They quickly flipped the script and built the Lions into one of the best teams in the NFL, going 27-7 in the last two seasons. Martin had a huge part to play in this revitalization. His role with the Lions was to improve the efficiency and accuracy of their scouting department. Martin's hard work was evident on the field as the Lions continuously hit with their draft picks and were excellent at signing key free agents.
Now, Martin will bring all of the skills and experience he has gained in the NFL to South Bend. Martin brings a unique experience to Notre Dame that can be seen as a major advantage for Notre Dame going forward. Not only has he seen how pro teams evaluate and select players, but he also understands the business aspect of football, which has now become a part of the college game. His time with the Lions proves he is more than capable of building an impressive roster with a budget in place. I believe this is so valuable in modern college football. With NIL, teams only have so much money to go around, so having someone who understands that situation is critical. Overall, Martin is a home-run hire with all the right experience and skills to improve Notre Dame's already talented roster. This hire also indicates Freeman has no plans of slowing down. With Ja'Juan Seider's hire, and now this one, Freeman is making it known that Notre Dame is determined to keep its name at the top of college football.
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