Bravo to the CFP Commitee
- Thread starter Irish2684
- Start date
IMHO, if we win out our odds are about 75% of being in the playoff. There is stuff out of our control. Included in that is the possibility that Stanford, USC, Michigan State and NC State could all end the season out of the top 25, as they all have tough games down the stretch. You have that happen, and have OSU and/or Oklahoma win out, which includes tough high profile games, we could be left out. It's not automatic.
I believe the CFP committee put ND at #3 to make a statement. ND has a bubble that only a loss can pop - win and you're in.
When asked whether or not he thinks about "style points" when playing certain teams, BK said, "Our goal as a team is to always dominate our opponent." The results on the field have shown the team has taken that goal to heart. This really is a new philosophy for BK. Before this year he used to think a win was a win. Close wins against mediocre teams never seemed to bother him. I think we can mark this down as 1 of many positive changes BK has made both as a coach and for the program. If we play an unexpectedly close game I don't think it will be because the staff decides to be conservative.
I agree with this. ND seems to throw the ball later in games then at any other point under Kelly. Not that he was as conservative as Charlie Weis but he would (2012-2015) definitely take the air out of the ball by the middle of the 4th if the Irish were up by 10 or more points. That’s not the case anymore. While he won’t got out of his was to try to score on the final drive, he certainly isn’t stopping the offense on the next to last or 2nd to last drives like he did in the past. This has lead to a few more scores this season. Hell he allowed Ian Book to throw the ball late in one (UNC?) game that even the commentators took note of.
I would be worried if I were one of the two SEC teams right now and I lost a game. Notre Dame wins out and they should be in. It would be tough for the committee to keep a one-loss SEC team along with an unbeaten SEC team and leave out a team from the Big 10 or Big 12 assuming OSU and Oklahoma remain one-loss teams. I think the powers that be would accept 3 Power 5 conference teams and a Notre Dame team worthy of a playoff spot. I don't think they accept two teams from one Power 5 conference and Notre Dame and leave out the remaining Power 5 conference teams that may only have one loss. I think Notre Dame is safe provided the Irish beat down Wake and Navy and handle Miami and Stanford on the road, even if those games are close. Notre Dame is a ratings gold mine for the college football playoff.
I don't believe ND necessarily played conservatively down stretch. They were losing players left and right and not the same team they were at the beginning of the year. We tend to dismiss teams like Temple, which was pretty good in 2015, and even BC, which always plays us like their lives depended on it. I really just think ND got as far as it could in 2015.
Of course. It's really a smaller race as two slots are reserved for the BUG and $EC. Even if you don't believe a kabal, their conf structure ensures that mediocre teams will have an inflated record which in turn pumps the metrics.
OF the remaining slots, the ACC and Big12 or even UW could throw some 1 loss teams in the mix.
No, the committee wasn’t “making a statement”; it simply saw ND as the third best team which it arguably is. Top 10 offense and defense , total control of games, a dominant team.
Last edited:
Similar threads
Latest posts
-
Recruiting Top 5 needs for Notre Dame's 2026 recruiting class- Latest: Tyler James
