SP+ is 1-half of the F+ ranking system and the F+ ranking system uses these SP+ projections to determine team-quality early on in the season.
These projections take into account a schools last 4 or 5 years on the recruiting trail, the amount of returning production from the season prior, the latest transfer portal acquisitions, the football team's last 5 years of performance (recent years weighted more heavily), among some lesser components as well.
- Most surprising to me is NDs #10 projected offense which is projected to be almost as good as their #9 defense.
- The data is showing we have a really balanced team (offense AND defense) and an offense much better than a lot of people think but a defense that might not be as good as we thought as well (closer to #10 than #5).
- ND has a total of TWO opponents in the top 25 (#13 A&M and #22 USC)
And another note, I've been posting these pre-season SP+ projections going back probably close to a decade now, and #10 is the highest I ever remember seeing Notre Dame ranked in this projection system (ND is usually in the 12-15th range).
ESPN’s post-spring SP+ projections (top 25)
| TEAM | SP+ | OFF. SP+ | DEF. SP+ | ST SP+ |
| 1. Georgia | 36.3 | 47.3 (2) | 11.0 (5) | 0.7 (4) |
| 2. Ohio St. | 32.7 | 36.6 (20) | 4.0 (1) | 0.5 (20) |
| 3. Oregon | 30.8 | 48.0 (1) | 17.2 (14) | -0.2 (85) |
| 4. Texas | 29.5 | 45.4 (4) | 16.0 (12) | 0.5 (17) |
| 5. Alabama | 29.1 | 43.7 (7) | 14.6 (8) | 0.7 (2) |
| 6. Michigan | 27.5 | 32.9 (32) | 5.5 (3) | 0.6 (7) |
| 7. Penn St. | 26.8 | 36.1 (23) | 9.3 (4) | 0.4 (28) |
| 8. Ole Miss | 26.6 | 44.0 (6) | 17.4 (15) | 0.5 (26) |
| 9. LSU | 25.1 | 47.2 (3) | 22.1 (35) | -0.1 (83) |
| 10. Notre Dame | 24.0 | 39.1 (10) | 15.1 (9) | 0.2 (53) |
| 11. Missouri | 23.1 | 41.4 (8) | 18.3 (18) | 0.3 (45) |
| 12. Florida St. | 21.4 | 36.9 (16) | 15.5 (10) | 0.6 (8) |
| 13. Texas A&M | 19.8 | 38.5 (11) | 18.7 (21) | 0.0 (73) |
| 14. Clemson | 19.8 | 37.0 (15) | 17.1 (13) | 0.1 (66) |
| 15. Oklahoma | 19.3 | 36.9 (17) | 17.5 (16) | -0.3 (95) |
| 16. Tennessee | 19.0 | 37.5 (14) | 18.5 (19) | 0.2 (52) |
| 17. Kansas St. | 16.8 | 36.5 (21) | 19.7 (28) | -0.3 (91) |
| 18. Utah | 16.1 | 31.7 (39) | 15.6 (11) | 0.4 (34) |
| 19. Miami | 14.4 | 36.9 (18) | 22.5 (36) | 0.7 (3) |
| 20. Oklahoma St. | 13.7 | 37.8 (13) | 24.0 (41) | 0.3 (42) |
| 21. USC | 13.6 | 44.0 (5) | 30.5 (87) | -0.4 (100) |
| 22. Iowa | 13.2 | 17.9 (117) | 4.7 (2) | 0.4 (30) |
| 23. SMU | 12.9 | 36.3 (22) | 23.4 (39) | -0.4 (99) |
| 24. Arizona | 12.7 | 38.1 (12) | 25.4 (49) | 0.0 (79) |
| 25. Kentucky | 12.4 | 33.5 (31) | 21.1 (31) | 0.4 (39) |
This is a premium/pay walled article:
With the 2024 portal cycle and spring football in the books, it's time to look at the updated SP+ rankings for every team.
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