Notre Dame lost the national championship to Ohio State 34-23 on Monday, and just seconds after the score went final, got bad news on a key coach potentially moving on. Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden has emerged as the top candidate for the same position with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network broke the news seconds after the title game loss. “Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden has emerged as a top candidate to be the Bengals new DC,” Rapoport wrote on X. “Coach Zac Taylor has been waiting for the National Championship to end before moving forward.

Now that it has, he can speak with Golden & work thru it.” The Bengals fired defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo shortly after the season ended. He held the post for six seasons. Golden is the guy Taylor wants as Anarumo’s replacement but didn’t want to cause a distraction for the Irish during their run to the national championship. “It was a long wait.
But Notre Dame kept winning, all the way to the national championship before tonight’s tough loss to Ohio State,” Rapoport said. “Now, the Bengals can speak with Al Golden for its DC job.” This season under Golden, the Fighting Irish ranked ninth nationally in total defense, allowing an average of 298.3 yards per game, and stood second in scoring defense, giving up just 14.3 points per game.