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Was Notre Dame’s win against Clemson the best of the Brian Kelly era?

By Daniel Morrison

Nov 7, 2020; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Brian Kelly leads his team out of the tunnel before the game against the Clemson Tigers at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame defeated Clemson 47-40 in two overtimes. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 7, 2020; South Bend, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Brian Kelly leads his team out of the tunnel before the game against the Clemson Tigers at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame defeated Clemson 47-40 in two overtimes. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 24, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Brian Kelly looks on from the sidelines against the Pittsburgh Panthers during the fourth quarter at Heinz Field. Notre Dame won 45-3. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 24, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Brian Kelly looks on from the sidelines against the Pittsburgh Panthers during the fourth quarter at Heinz Field. Notre Dame won 45-3. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

Was Notre Dame’s win against Clemson the best of the Brian Kelly era?

Playing ranked teams early on?

Over Kelly’s first two seasons at Notre Dame, he beat two ranked teams, Utah and Michigan State. They were both ranked 15th in the country and were the first win of four-game winning streaks for Notre Dame. Neither game was particularly close, either.

Neither of those wins can compete with Saturday against Clemson.

The Fighting Irish exploded behind an elite defense in 2012, going undefeated in the regular season. They had four ranked wins that season, though the wins against Michigan and Michigan State are less impressive considering they ended with average records. The Stanford game, however, was when Notre Dame proved they were a legitimate threat in 2012.

It was a brutal, physical game that ended in a defensive stop in overtime. It made it clear there was something special about that Notre Dame team, but the Oklahoma game proved they could play with almost anyone. In Norman, they met a Sooners team who scored over 50 points in three of its first six games.

Notre Dame shut them down, only giving up 13 points. Finally, the Irish were seen as a legitimate threat.

The 2013 season saw a regression for Notre Dame, essentially losing to every ranked team they played outside of No. 23 Arizona State, who finished the season 20th in the country at 10-4. Then 2014 started with tons of promise and a solid win over a ranked Stanford team, before Notre Dame traveled to Florida State in what could have launched them into the top spot in the country.

They lost that game on a brutal offensive pass interference call late, and the season unraveled from there.

The next year, 2015, the Fighting Irish won a couple of games against ranked Georgia Tech and Temple teams. That was good, but unsatisfying. Those were teams this program should always beat, ranked because of their records and not because they were one of the most talented teams in the country.

Those were games the Irish were expected to win. Georgia Tech finished the season 3-9, having played Notre Dame at 2-0. Temple went 10-4 and won their division of the AAC.

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