Notre Dame Football: Fighting Irish Likely Moving Into College Football Playoff Picture After Saturday’s Win Over Pittsburgh-


The Notre Dame Fighting Irish could soon be back atop the college football world, with a weekend shake-up that is likely to put them into the College Football Playoff bracket.

The Irish defeated Pittsburgh on Saturday to move to 11-1, then got some help in the form of a SEC showdown that is likely to drop a team out of the top five and make room for Notre Dame to move in.

The most important game for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish was Saturday afternoon’s win over Pittsburgh. DeShone Kizer threw for 262 yards and five touchdowns. Seven of those passes went to Will Fuller, who had 152 yards.

“Just another day at the office, honestly,” Fuller said (via ESPN). “[Kizer] is going to throw the ball up there and I know it’ll hit my hands.”

His play had the full attention of Note Dame coach Brian Kelly.

“On the sidelines he’s talking about ‘Get me the ball, I can score,'” Kelly said. “You can see the way he attacks the football out there and the way he runs, he’s a guy that you want to get it to.”

Notre Dame now has a favorable schedule ahead, with Boston College and Wake Forest next on the schedule. Combined, the teams are 0-11 against ACC teams. The Fighting Irish even got some help with their rivals’ wins. Top-ranked Clemson beat Florida State 23-13, which kept Notre Dame’s only loss looking better on their record sheet. They will likely maintain an edge over other one-loss teams, including Alabama.

Even Alabama’s win over LSU will help the Fighting Irish, Bleacher Report noted.

“The key here is that Alabama left no doubt in its win over LSU, outclassing the Tigers for 60 convincing minutes. A late score made things look more respectable, but the Crimson Tide outgained the Tigers 434-182, holding Leonard Fournette to 31 yards on 19 carries. Contrast that to Notre Dame’s loss at Clemson, and you’ll see how this plays well for the Irish. A close loss at Alabama would have rivaled ND’s close loss at Clemson. This loss, however, does not.”

The Fighting Irish also got some help from Nebraska, which upset Michigan State to likely drop them out of playoff contention. Even Navy’s 45-20 win over Memphis helped Notre Dame’s resume look better.

Some experts believe Notre Dame has done enough to reach the playoff bracket, likely as the No. 4 team behind Clemson, Alabama, and Ohio State in whatever order. Campus Insiders noted that the Fighting Irish have done what it takes to reach the playoffs.

“These aren’t like the other polls and rankings that automatically move a winning team up after another team loses, but in this case, No. 6 Baylor was shaky against Kansas State, No. 7 Michigan State lost, No. 8 TCU lost, and No. 9 Iowa isn’t going to move that far up after struggling against Indiana. Notre Dame cranked out a big win over Pitt – it’s a lock for No. 4.”

For Notre Dame, it would be a chance to atone for the flop in the 2013 national title game, when the Crimson Tide ran all over the surprising Fighting Irish to keep them from winning their first championship since 1988. They appear to be getting another chance this year.

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish will soon find out if they have reached the College Football Playoff rankings. The new set of four teams will be announced on Tuesday.

[Photo by Jared Wickersham/Getty Images]

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