Notre Dame football officially is losing Al Golden to the Bengals. However, the Irish could have an immediate replacement.

The Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator job has been open for more than two weeks now, but there hasn't been much movement on a possible hiring and now we know why: The team was waiting for Notre Dame to finish its season.

Four years ago, Mike Moon was hired to Notre Dame's defensive staff by then-coordinator Marcus Freeman and ex-defensive line coach Mike Elston. But Moon quickly became a key cog in the Fighting Irish's Al Golden-led defense, proving his coaching versatility by roles that assisted with the coaching of Notre Dame's defensive line and linebackers.

Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden is expected to join the Bengals in the same role, sources told ESPN's Pete Thamel on Wednesday. The news comes days after the Fighting Irish lost to Ohio State in the College Football Playoff championship game, the school's first title shot of the century.

ATLANTA -- Al Golden orchestrated a Notre Dame defense that ranked top 10 nationally across myriad categories and spurred the Fighting Irish's run to Monday night's College Football Playoff Championship.

The Cincinnati Bengals are reportedly looking to hire Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden for the same job.

Al Golden is set to join the Bengals as their next defensive coordinator, after leading Notre Dame to the CFP national title game.

Notre Dame defensive coordinator Al Golden already took a job with the Cincinnati Bengals, but he still offered plenty of praise for his old team as the Fighting Irish continue without him

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish made a splashy hire to replace Al Golden as their next offensive coordinator by bringing in Chris Ash. The former head coach at Rutgers has been everywhere, man, including a notable run with Ohio State previously.