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Notre Dame Football: Writers Play Fact or Fiction

By Sonny Martinez

CHESTNUT HILL, MA - SEPTEMBER 16: Head coach Brian Kelly of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish looks on during the second half against the Boston College Eagles at Alumni Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
CHESTNUT HILL, MA - SEPTEMBER 16: Head coach Brian Kelly of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish looks on during the second half against the Boston College Eagles at Alumni Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /
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CHESTNUT HILL, MA – SEPTEMBER 16: Head coach Brian Kelly of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish looks on during the second half against the Boston College Eagles at Alumni Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /

Although still a few months away from real football activity, there’s plenty of Notre Dame football talking points out there.

From the legitimate to the totally absurd, a lot of things have been thrown at the wall in regard to Notre Dame football recently just to stir up some controversy.

Today, we’ll look at five of these talking points/statements with a “Fact or Fiction” session with the help of Slap The Sign writers J.P. Scott, Jack Leniart and myself.

Statement No. 1: The 2018 season opening matchup against Michigan is the most important game on the schedule.

JP: Fiction. Because the matchup is so early in the season against what will be a highly ranked team — combined with the overall strength of the schedule — Notre Dame can afford to lose a hard-fought game to Michigan. There are more than enough opportunities to rebound from an early “quality loss” — just like Georgia in 2017 — and remain in the College Football Playoff conversation.

Jack: Fact. Michigan is arguably the best team on Notre Dame’s schedule this year. This will be the first meeting between the two rivals since 2014. They’ll play under the lights in prime time during the opening weekend of the college football season. So, yeah, this game is kind of a big deal. The Irish need to win this game if they want to have a chance of making the College Football Playoff this season. After the opener, Notre Dame has a manageable three-game stretch before their schedule heats up. It would be a huge luxury to go into the meat of their schedule undefeated.

Sonny: Fact. Michigan may end up being great on the field, but not reflect in the record books. In addition to Notre Dame, Michigan plays on the road against Northwestern, Michigan State and Ohio State, along with Penn State at home and a crossover against Wisconsin. It’s possible that Michigan only wins 8-9 games, even though they’re stronger than that. Notre Dame can not afford to lose to an 8 win team to start the season, but also a victory over a potential Big 10 Champion, which I believe is reachable, also, is a great way to start the season. This is absolutely a must win.

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