Chris Ash follows Al Golden, who returned to the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals on Jan. 22 after three seasons running the Notre Dame football defense.

Notre Dame made the hiring of defensive coordinator Chris Ash official on Saturday, issuing a press release about the pending move (requires standard Notre Dame hiring protocol). In that release, Notre Dame head football coach Marcus Freeman issued a statement about the veteran assistant that will now call the Fighting Irish defense.

Co-defensive coordinator with Luke Fickell for Ohio State’s 2014 national champions, Chris Ash helped coach Urban Meyer’s Buckeyes go 26-2 in 2014-15.

Just over a week after losing to the Ohio State Buckeyes in the national championship game, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish have their next defensive coordinator. According to ESPN's Pete Thamel, the university is hiring Chris Ash as their new DC.

Freeman, who is bi-racial with Black and South Korean parents, already staked a place as the first such head coach to lead a team to the national final.