A Way to the dance..?

[stu4don]

We must beat Michigan...
And they must beat PSU this weekend.
USC beats Oregon.
Ohio State has a tough slate of Michigan, Wisconsin, Penn State...

Anybody much smarter than me wanna keep going with this....

The road is a tough one for the Irish.... The Michigan game is going to be hard one.

 

[Get Nasty]

Locks

SEC Champion
1 loss alabama if they lose to good team or in championship
undefeated clemson, ohio state, wisconsin, oklahoma. penn state (only one of PSU, OSU, Wisconsin can even go undefeated)
OSU with one loss to top 10 team


The was I see ND having a chance is this

-ND must go undefeated
-Alabama needs to go undefeated and win SEC Championship
-Clemson and or Oklahoma need to get upset
-Ohio State Needs to win it all undefeated or a bunch of upsets in big ten


Final four of

Bama,
Clemson/Oklahoma (assuming one gets upset)
Ohio State
Notre Dame


ND gets in over 1 loss Wisconsin, Clemson/Oklahoma, LSU

 

[d1042]

Oregon, tOSU, UGA, Bama, LSU, AU, CU, Okl, UF :
as 1 loss teams all will jump ND. all of them will have played in a CCG. And that is also how it should be. I hope ND gets to play at least 1 of those teams in a post season bowl.

 

[d1042]

Locks

SEC Champion
1 loss alabama if they lose to good team or in championship
undefeated clemson, ohio state, wisconsin, oklahoma. penn state (only one of PSU, OSU, Wisconsin can even go undefeated)
OSU with one loss to top 10 team


The was I see ND having a chance is this

-ND must go undefeated
-Alabama needs to go undefeated and win SEC Championship
-Clemson and or Oklahoma need to get upset
-Ohio State Needs to win it all undefeated or a bunch of upsets in big ten


Final four of

Bama,
Clemson/Oklahoma (assuming one gets upset)
Ohio State
Notre Dame


ND gets in over 1 loss Wisconsin, Clemson/Oklahoma, LSU

Nope, never gonna happen! 1loss teams in P5 who have competed in a CCG
are more deserving.

 

[Catholicfan95]

It has always been my stance that all you have to do is win your next game. If we were able to go 11-1 to end the year we put ourselves in a great spot for a NY6. I do not have a crystal ball, I cannot sit here and tell you what the landscape is going to be in 6 weeks nor will I sit and stress about it, it is just silly. I like to focus on winning because it is the only thing the team can control. It would be nice if SC would win the south, it would be great to see UGA rebound and make it to the SEC Championship game, It would be great to have UM beat PSU and OSU, and so on and so forth. It stinks that we have to play all these bum teams in between, it sucks that "we might not have a big win all year" I get it all, but just win games and everything will handle itself.

We have a great bye week slot, use this week get ready for a dogfight in a week against UM.
Go Irish!

 

[echowaker]

need Texas to beat Oklahoma in Big 12 title game. I think the Pac 12 gets left out. also need a few teams in the SEC to eat each other so they only get one team in.

 

[echowaker]

It has always been my stance that all you have to do is win your next game. If we were able to go 11-1 to end the year we put ourselves in a great spot for a NY6. I do not have a crystal ball, I cannot sit here and tell you what the landscape is going to be in 6 weeks nor will I sit and stress about it, it is just silly. I like to focus on winning because it is the only thing the team can control. It would be nice if SC would win the south, it would be great to see UGA rebound and make it to the SEC Championship game, It would be great to have UM beat PSU and OSU, and so on and so forth. It stinks that we have to play all these bum teams in between, it sucks that "we might not have a big win all year" I get it all, but just win games and everything will handle itself.

We have a great bye week slot, use this week get ready for a dogfight in a week against UM.
Go Irish!

an 11-1 ND with a 9 game winning streak will have more than a punchers chance.

 

[d1042]

an 11-1 ND with a 9 game winning streak will have more than a punchers chance.

committee:
Fool me once shame on you
Fool me twice shame on me
All 1 loss P5 teams that competed in a CCG have a better claim.

 

[Get Nasty]

committee:
Fool me once shame on you
Fool me twice shame on me
All 1 loss P5 teams that competed in a CCG have a better claim.

Not if you lost to SC, georgia done

Clemson loses to anyone on their schedule they are done

Oregon loses again, they are done (one loss ND vs One loss Oregon would be interesting)

One Loss PSU or OSU gets in if they only lose to top ten team, Wisconsin and OSU play regular season.

One loss LSU, depends on who and when it is against.

ND has a realistic shot to make it, with that said, i'm not worried about it. Need to clean up things on O and D next two weeks to show they deserve it down the home stretch. Need to clean up corners actually attempting to play ball. Need to clean up safety tackling and gillman/Jalen Coverage.

On Offense, need to find something consistent in the passing game. Can't keep running outs outs outs. Claypool and Kmet are too talented not to utilize them better. Hopefully getting armstrong back in the passing game will help.

 

[Yooper Irishfan]

Just being honest, I don't think we have the offensive weapons or the head coach to compete against Bama/Clemson/Ohio State/Oklahoma with a month layoff between games. Just hoping we win out and somehow draw an alluring matchup in a NY6 bowl, though there don't appear to be many great possibilities there. All we can do is go 11-1 and let the chips fall where they may.

 

[d1042]

Not if you lost to SC, georgia done

Clemson loses to anyone on their schedule they are done

Oregon loses again, they are done (one loss ND vs One loss Oregon would be interesting)

One Loss PSU or OSU gets in if they only lose to top ten team, Wisconsin and OSU play regular season.

One loss LSU, depends on who and when it is against.

ND has a realistic shot to make it, with that said, i'm not worried about it. Need to clean up things on O and D next two weeks to show they deserve it down the home stretch. Need to clean up corners actually attempting to play ball. Need to clean up safety tackling and gillman/Jalen Coverage.

On Offense, need to find something consistent in the passing game. Can't keep running outs outs outs. Claypool and Kmet are too talented not to utilize them better. Hopefully getting armstrong back in the passing game will help.

ND fans have their own little reality! wacko universe!

 

[Toby Smart]

SOME ND fans have their own little reality. SOME SC fans do too. The truth is, ND is in a fight to survive every week. They have zero room for error. There are consequences for losing a game. Perhaps they should focus on improving their game, from QB to Safety, from coaching to play calling. Score board watching won't git 'er done. Take care of your own business. IMHO, this team is not a play-off team right now. NYD6 yes. Play-off no. The second half Saturday night left an unsettling feeling in that stadium, and for good reason.

 

[IrishMike409]

This team probably isn’t winning a title.

Would you rather go to playoffs and play Bama in Rd 1?

Or

Go 11-1, play in and win a major bowl and head into next season with a ton of positive momentum?

 

[BGI User 1596]

This team probably isn’t winning a title.

Would you rather go to playoffs and play Bama in Rd 1?

Or

Go 11-1, play in and win a major bowl and head into next season with a ton of positive momentum?

Play Bama. You have to measure yourself against the best.

 

[88ND]

Michigan absolutely must beat PSU.

If they don't it's going to take a Rudy sized miracle to get in.

As in all conference winners all having 2 or 3 losses.

Michigan must beat PSU. Preferably easily and take a huge leap in the polls for beating a number 7 team.
That will move us up again in the poll and Michigan as well to create a 6 vs. 9 (probably) match-up in Ann Arbor.

Obviously we must win that which is no easy task. BK has never won in Ann Arbor.

Then Michigan must beat OSU to end the year.

Wisconsin must beat OSU in two weeks. Both will probably be undefeated in a huge match-up.

That will create a huge Minnesota Wisconsin match-up to end the year for the B1G west champ and representative in the B1G title game.

If Michigan does it's business and the above happens they'll represent the east IN the Big ten title game. Hopefully they win that.

That's the only chance I see of us getting in the playoff over a B1G champ.

The SEC is again the problem.

If Bama or LSU only loss is against each other and it's a close game... Odds are the winner of that will win the SEC titke game the committee will take both Bama and LSU.

That leaves Oklahahoma. The way Hurts is playing they aren't leaving them out of the playoff. Unless OU stumbles badly twice they're in again.

That leaves one spot. Clemson. Clemson who I feel is the best of the bunch is getting in.

There is nothing on their schedule holding them up.
They'd have to lose badly in the ACC title game to a bad team to get left out.

Lots of football to go obviously and anything can happen but we need a lot of help.

 

[Get Nasty]

ND fans have their own little reality! wacko universe!

Making final four is a pretty big reality for this team. They're frichan #8 in the country right now with all very winnable games remaining.

Saying they are out is moronic. The biggest games of the season are just starting for the SEC and Big Ten.

 

[TDIrish27]

Not if you lost to SC, georgia done

Clemson loses to anyone on their schedule they are done

Oregon loses again, they are done (one loss ND vs One loss Oregon would be interesting)

One Loss PSU or OSU gets in if they only lose to top ten team, Wisconsin and OSU play regular season.

One loss LSU, depends on who and when it is against.

ND has a realistic shot to make it, with that said, i'm not worried about it. Need to clean up things on O and D next two weeks to show they deserve it down the home stretch. Need to clean up corners actually attempting to play ball. Need to clean up safety tackling and gillman/Jalen Coverage.

On Offense, need to find something consistent in the passing game. Can't keep running outs outs outs. Claypool and Kmet are too talented not to utilize them better. Hopefully getting armstrong back in the passing game will help.

LSU has 2 wins better than any ND can have even if they have 1 loss to perhaps a Bama-----plus they play Auburn in 2 weeks.

If Georgia wins out they win the SEC-----they're in.

A 1 loss PSU team will have more quality wins than ND too.

 

[lyonhawk]

Here’s the thought exercise until we get much closer to the end of the season. How does that each conference get left out behind an 11-1 ND and can any conference get a second in front of 11-1 ND.

SEC. No scenario they are left out completely. If the LSU/Bama loser finishes 11-1 and the winner wins the SEC, it will be hard to leave the 11-1 out. It will also be interesting in the same scenario if the winner goes on to lose to 12-1 Florida or Georgia in the SECCG.

ACC. Only Clemson getting in. No chance for 2. Clemson’s schedule may end up worse than ours, so who knows what happens if they drop one.

Big 12 - at this point, I think it all comes down to OU. Our best bet here is they lose in the big 12 title game.

Big 10. I think the conf champ is in regardless right now. I can see a non-conf champ with one loss getting in if that loss is in the title game to a team they beat in the regular season.

Pac 12. This one is probably the good news for us. Only potential risk to 11-1 ND from this conference is 1 loss Oregon.

So we probably need OU to not win the big 12 and the big 10 and SEC to cannibalize themselves enough that they can’t get two teams in.

 

[Kelso86]

We must beat Michigan...
And they must beat PSU this weekend.
USC beats Oregon.
Ohio State has a tough slate of Michigan, Wisconsin, Penn State...

Anybody much smarter than me wanna keep going with this....

The road is a tough one for the Irish.... The Michigan game is going to be hard one.

The road to the playoff is bumpy -- but in the end, I think ND finishes 11-1 and misses out.

Based solely on mid--season results ot date, the 4 best right now are (in no particular order)

Alabama
Ohio State
Oklahoma
LSU

Now -- Alabama and LSU square off later (and Bama has Auburn as well), OSU has a nice 3 game set with Wisconsin, Michigan and PSU, Oklahoma has the Big 12, and sitting out there is Clemson -- how good are they?

That said, ND simply need to take care of its own business and let the cards play out. That is all they control right now.

 

[napy2121]

It’s too early to start mapping this out though I get it’s fun to speculate. Here’s what we know, to get in ND needs massive amounts of chaos. This year more than any that seems somewhat less likely. Here’s why:

1. Clemson has their one sleepwalk game and they won it. Likely 13-0 conference champs and IN. The acc otherwise stinks.

2. Wiscy or OSU will likely be b1g champs and to me OSU looks generationally dominant.

3. I’m not sure OU will get beat this year either though this seems more possible to me than the others.

4. One SEC will get in.

5. They are going to try and shoe horn another sec team this year.

6. ND likely won’t get the benefit of the doubt v other 1 loss teams, especially 1 loss SEC teams.

I’m just looking forward to a good game and a W vs UM. Then chaos. But it doesn’t look good this year.

 

[Catholicfan95]

It is years like this that not being in a conference hurts us and our chances to get into the CFP.

 

[echowaker]

This team probably isn’t winning a title.

Would you rather go to playoffs and play Bama in Rd 1?

Or

Go 11-1, play in and win a major bowl and head into next season with a ton of positive momentum?

go to the playoff every time. anything else is a loser mentality. no top level team has a goal to play in a consolation game.

 

[napy2121]

go to the playoff every time. anything else is a loser mentality. no top level team has a goal to play in a consolation game.

Boy do I disagree with this. I don’t believe winning a ny6 bowl should be THE goal, but it’s no consolation prize for this program either. I think it adds credibility to our pursuit of a title that we can end this big bowl draught. I think Dabo/Clemson did this when they got that first orange bowl win, it gave them credibility they didn’t have otherwise for following seasons. Also if this tourney or bust mentality is too pervasive then you deal with motivation after loss 2. Let me edit to be clear- yes the first goal should be title and we should think that way until we are fully eliminated. We aren’t this season and that should be the goal here.

 

[Catholicfan95]

Boy do I disagree with this. I don’t believe winning a ny6 bowl should be THE goal, but it’s no consolation prize for this program either. I think it adds credibility to our pursuit of a title that we can end this big bowl draught. I think Dabo/Clemson did this when they got that first orange bowl win, it gave them credibility they didn’t have otherwise for following seasons. Also if this tourney or bust mentality is too pervasive then you deal with motivation after loss 2. Let me edit to be clear- yes the first goal should be title and we should think that way until we are fully eliminated. We aren’t this season and that should be the goal here.

Win 10 games a year
Win a bowl game
Finish Top 10 in offensive efficiency
Finish Top 10 in Defensive efficiency

If you want to build stable program these are the goals. The chances at titles will come if you achieve these each year.

 

[napy2121]

Win 10 games a year
Win a bowl game
Finish Top 10 in offensive efficiency
Finish Top 10 in Defensive efficiency

If you want to build stable program these are the goals. The chances at titles will come if you achieve these each year.

Yes I completely agree.

 

[IrishMike409]

Boy do I disagree with this. I don’t believe winning a ny6 bowl should be THE goal, but it’s no consolation prize for this program either. I think it adds credibility to our pursuit of a title that we can end this big bowl draught. I think Dabo/Clemson did this when they got that first orange bowl win, it gave them credibility they didn’t have otherwise for following seasons. Also if this tourney or bust mentality is too pervasive then you deal with motivation after loss 2. Let me edit to be clear- yes the first goal should be title and we should think that way until we are fully eliminated. We aren’t this season and that should be the goal here.

Great post. Perfectly said

 

[IrishFanSam81]

Pretty simple really.
SEC Champion guaranteed a spot.
Clemson guaranteed a spot. (They aren't losing with that schedule)
Big 10 Champion guaranteed a spot. (Wisconsin or Ohio State aren't losing 2 games)
PAC 12 is out already.
It comes down to Oklahoma, Notre Dame and maybe a second SEC team.
Oklahoma needs to lose a game before the Big 12 championship game otherwise they are in over ND. If Oklahoma loses before then i believe ND is next in line, unless the 1 loss team is LSU and their only loss is to Bama. Then its a toss up. LSU at 11-1 vs Notre Dame at 11-1.

 

[Catholicfan95]

Yes I completely agree.

I just find it so hilarious that people on this board are continually complaining about mediocrity within our program, when their posts and evidence to suggest this are mediocre at best! Seems like a lot of these people do not have any clue about what mediocrity is. Sure its been a tumultuous 25 years but we have come a long, long way. We are now starting to become a viable program that can compete and recruit nationally on a consistent basis. 95% of these post are dumb arguments about peoples delusional opinions that contradict what is currently happening in the program. I wish some of these people would get a grip and bring something new to the table other than negative opinions on the program. I assure them it is more fun to have intelligent conversations about real football.

 

[IrishFanSam81]

committee:
Fool me once shame on you
Fool me twice shame on me
All 1 loss P5 teams that competed in a CCG have a better claim.

First of all that 1 loss P5 team will have 2 losses because they lost in the CCG, unless you mean an undefeated P5 team that competed in the CCG and that is their only loss. Then yes they are in over ND. That also greatly limits the amount of teams you are talking about.

 

[echowaker]

Boy do I disagree with this. I don’t believe winning a ny6 bowl should be THE goal, but it’s no consolation prize for this program either. I think it adds credibility to our pursuit of a title that we can end this big bowl draught. I think Dabo/Clemson did this when they got that first orange bowl win, it gave them credibility they didn’t have otherwise for following seasons. Also if this tourney or bust mentality is too pervasive then you deal with motivation after loss 2. Let me edit to be clear- yes the first goal should be title and we should think that way until we are fully eliminated. We aren’t this season and that should be the goal here.

ND does not have a conference championship to play for. you'd prefer winning a consolation game over participating in the playoff to possibly win a national championship ? that's insanity to me.

 

[echowaker]

committee:
Fool me once shame on you
Fool me twice shame on me
All 1 loss P5 teams that competed in a CCG have a better claim.

that makes no sense. every season is to be judged on it's own merit.

 

[napy2121]

ND does not have a conference championship to play for. you'd prefer winning a consolation game over participating in the playoff to possibly win a national championship ? that's insanity to me.

Where did I say prefer?

 

[echowaker]

Boy do I disagree with this. I don’t believe winning a ny6 bowl should be THE goal, but it’s no consolation prize for this program either. I think it adds credibility to our pursuit of a title that we can end this big bowl draught. I think Dabo/Clemson did this when they got that first orange bowl win, it gave them credibility they didn’t have otherwise for following seasons. Also if this tourney or bust mentality is too pervasive then you deal with motivation after loss 2. Let me edit to be clear- yes the first goal should be title and we should think that way until we are fully eliminated. We aren’t this season and that should be the goal here.

it's a consolation game no matter how you want to cut it. All non playoff bowl games are just that. they are for the teams that weren't good enough to play for the big prize. this "big bowl" draught as you call it is meaningless in my opinion with the advent of the playoff. by meaningless i mean in the national picture. every game is meaningful to players and their fan bases.

 

[echowaker]

Where did I say prefer?

my bad. i meant the poster who posed the question.

 

[echowaker]

This team probably isn’t winning a title.

Would you rather go to playoffs and play Bama in Rd 1?

Or

Go 11-1, play in and win a major bowl and head into next season with a ton of positive momentum?

as a former player i find the question insulting. I will always choose the opportunity to win a championship.

 

[napy2121]

it's a consolation game no matter how you want to cut it. All non playoff bowl games are just that. they are for the teams that weren't good enough to play for the big prize. this "big bowl" draught as you call it is meaningless in my opinion with the advent of the playoff. by meaningless i mean in the national picture. every game is meaningful to players and their fan bases.

It’s all subjective but I think the example of Clemson getting over the hump is a powerful one at least enough to say hey if we don’t treat it like a consolation it can be used as a tool to get us where we eventually want to go.

 

[napy2121]

For example I absolutely believe the committee will hold last year against us. They will say it won’t but I believe if LSU has 1 loss and were 11-1 we are out. Probably for some other reasons too but say next year we come off a ny6 bowl win we wouldn’t be as easy to dismiss. JMO

 

[Catholicfan95]

This team probably isn’t winning a title.

Would you rather go to playoffs and play Bama in Rd 1?

Or

Go 11-1, play in and win a major bowl and head into next season with a ton of positive momentum?

I would rather have a chance to win a major bowl while also competing for a title, which is what would happen with the CFP system. This is an awful mentality and having a second place is great mentality will never make you a champion.

 

[TDIrish27]

For example I absolutely believe the committee will hold last year against us. They will say it won’t but I believe if LSU has 1 loss and were 11-1 we are out. Probably for some other reasons too but say next year we come off a ny6 bowl win we wouldn’t be as easy to dismiss. JMO

Yeah------like SOS

Let's be real----they have a road win at Texas-----beat a Top 10 Florida team

Play Auburn in 2 weeks-------we don't or won't have anything approaching that.

 

[IrishFanSam81]

For example I absolutely believe the committee will hold last year against us. They will say it won’t but I believe if LSU has 1 loss and were 11-1 we are out. Probably for some other reasons too but say next year we come off a ny6 bowl win we wouldn’t be as easy to dismiss. JMO

Yep. If Notre Dame gets selected for the playoffs I hope Kelly turns it down to play in a lesser bowl.