With CFP Hopes Dashed, Notre Dame is in the New Year’s Six

Notre Dame fans look to the bowl game to help heal the hurt at the end of the season.

On a cold evening in Palo Alto, California, even the Notre Dame fans watching from the comfort of their living room felt the chill of a last-second loss to the Stanford Cardinal that eliminated the Fighting Irish from playoff contention.

In hindsight, the Irish may not have had much of a chance to get into the College Football Playoff even if quarterback DeShone Kizer’s go-ahead touchdown run with 30 seconds left had given them the win. They would have needed a much more convincing win, and a loss by one of the top four teams, to look appealing enough in the eyes of the selection committee.

Yet, it’s impossible for Irish fans to be disappointed in a team that fought through adversity all season long and finished 10-2, their best finish since the undefeated season in 2012.

Notre Dame will still end up playing in a major bowl game, and there are some juicy potential matchups that will attract a lot of attention. Given that they were one of the teams on the brink of a playoff berth, the Irish are almost guaranteed to be placed in one of the New Year’s Six bowl games. The question is which one, and against which team?

With conference championship games to be played this weekend, there is still a lot of potential for chaos in the final playoff rankings. However, assuming that the favorites win, the top four will most likely be Clemson, Alabama, Oklahoma and Michigan State, respectively.

That would leave defending champion Ohio State on the outside looking in, and Bleacher Report’s Joe Pantorno has the Buckeyes as one possible opponent for Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl. A clash between two of the best rushing offenses in the country would make for an old-school, physical game that would put the endurance of both defenses to the test.

There is also a possibility that the Irish could see the Iowa Hawkeyes if they lose in the Big 10 championship, but the loser of that game is more likely to end up in the Rose Bowl.

A much more probable opponent for Notre Dame would be the Houston Cougars, assuming that they take care of business in the AAC championship game. Houston has one of the most dynamic offenses in the country behind dual-threat quarterback Greg Ward Jr., and their only loss on he season came when Ward sat out against Connecticut due to a sprained ankle.

While those would all be exciting games to watch, none would have the same intrigue behind them as this last possibility. According to FanSided, the Irish could see none other than their former quarterback, Everett Golson, and his Florida State Seminoles.

Oct 24, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Florida State Seminoles quarterback Everett Golson (6) walks off of the field after Florida State lost to the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Bobby Dodd Stadium. Georgia Tech won 22-16. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Notre Dame fans can never forget the way Golson led the Irish to the national championship game in 2012, only to be suspended for the following season due to academics. He was never the same when he returned in 2014, showing glimpses of greatness, but mostly inconsistency and poor decision making. He was replaced by Malik Zaire for Notre Dame’s bowl game against LSU, in which Zaire led the Irish to a win with an impressive performance. Rather than try to earn his starting spot back, Golson transferred to Florida State for his final year of eligibility.

It has been relieving for Irish fans to see that Golson hasn’t improved as a Seminole, and he has lost his starting job yet again. After FSU just beat the Florida Gators this past weekend, he isn’t likely to get another chance either.

While the Irish faithful would love to see Jaylon Smith and Sheldon Day throwing Golson to the turf, it would be just as gratifying to see him stand helplessly on the sidelines watching his former teammates win a bowl game for the second time without his help.