It's coming down to the final weeks of the season and the race for the College Football Playoffs thickens. That being said, as the Irish prepare to take on Army this week, there are other games that Notre Fans should keep an eye on as it could make their resume look better and could help their chances in making the playoffs. As of right now, the rankings has the Irish hosting a first round bye, but that is only if the season ended today. The hope with the chaos that has been happening this 2024 campaign and the wish that it continues so that it makes things easier for Notre Dame, it could be an easier path to the national championship.
Indiana-Ohio State
Indiana has been an incredible story this year and with Curt Cignetti's leadership, the Hoosiers truly believe they have a chance at winning a national championship. However, they have a tough matchup for them as they face mighty Ohio State. This is actually a matchup Irish fans should be rooting for Indiana as it's a number two ranked side against number five. Indiana knocking off Ohio State helps both themselves and Notre Dame with higher rankings. Ohio State winning will only help Notre Dame move up, but only a smidge.
Ole Miss-Florida
This is an upset alert. Ole Miss is ranked ninth and any more victories only threatens the Irish's rankings. If Florida wins and causes more chaos, then it helps give Notre Dame more breathing room. Hey, who doesn't want more craziness this college football season!?
SMU-Virginia
Virginia showed last week against the Irish that they have some fight in them. If that's the case, then maybe they can cause an upset against a rising SMU side. Very similar to Ole Miss-Florida, but the biggest difference here is the seeding as SMU is trying to secure a first round bye. If Virginia can win, then it helps any way it can.
Penn State-Minnesota
Minnesota winning here actually helps Notre Dame in two different ways. It's help with both the seedings and the rankings. Penn State is trying to secure a first round bye by playing for the Big Ten Championship, so having them lose here makes things more clear. As for the rankings, it just means the Irish have a higher seed and most likely secure a home game in the first round.
BYU-Arizona State
There's more at stake for BYU than Arizona State, but this all comes down to breathing room for Notre Dame. BYU is vying for a higher seeding and earning a first round bye, but their upset to Kansas makes things difficult for them. If Arizona State wins, they effectively knockout BYU.
Colorado-Kansas
Kansas has been very shocking this year, but their role at this point is to play as spoiler. That being said, with having already upsetting BYU, they have a chance at doing the same to one of the bigger stories in Colorado. Colorado has been led by Shedeur Sanders at quarterback and Travis Hunter at wide receiver with Deion Sanders as the head coach as they have been stomping their way to a possible berth in the playoffs. That being said, Colorado's resume isn't that strong and one more loss can really affect them. It will give the Irish more breathing room, but if Kansas can upset then it really benefits Notre Dame a lot with the seeding.
Comments