Notre Dame football: Week 1 games show Irish cannot take FSU lightly
By Brad Weiss
The Notre Dame football team takes on Florida State in a game they should win Sunday night, but they are not to be taken lightly.
It all started on Friday night, as the UNC Tar Heels, the No. 10-ranked team in the country, went to Blacksburg to take on Virginia Tech. One of the better teams on the Notre Dame football schedule this season, that was a game the Tar Heels should have dominated, especially with one of the more highly-touted quarterbacks in the country under center.
However, as is the case early in football seasons, the game did not go the way that Sam Howell or his Tar Heels teammates wanted it to, and in the end, they lost their opener 17-10. Lane Stadium was rocking, a venue the Irish will have to play in later in the season, and it forced Howell to throw three interceptions in the game.
Another top-ranked team on the Irish’s schedule, Wisconsin, opened up their season as the No. 12-ranked team in the country and would host the No. 19-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions. Like UNC, Wisconsin struggled mightily on offense, losing 16-10 in front of the home crowd, and there are some serious questions about that team moving forward.
We also saw Ohio State go to the wire against Minnesota, and at the time of this piece, No. 11 Oregon was tied in the fourth quarter against Fresno State. Heck, even No. 2 Oklahoma barely won, edging out Tulane 40-35.
Notre Dame football cannot take FSU lightly
What this tells us is that no matter the fact that Notre Dame is No. 9 in the country, and FSU is unranked, this is not a game to be taken lightly. In fact, no game on this schedule, outside of maybe Toledo should be taken lightly, especially a proud program like Florida State on the road.
Florida State has two good running backs, solid quarterback play, and some dynamic playmakers on defense, so it is not a team that is just going to lay down and die against a top-10 opponent. They are also playing with heavy hearts as a program, as Bobby Bowden died earlier this month, so the Irish better come with their A-Game in this one.
Notre Dame will likely come out on top against Florida State, but as we have seen so many times this week, and in early weeks in the past, teams are still figuring things out in Week 1. What the Irish need to do is protect the football, and jump on Florida State early, because the last thing they want to do is let Mike Norvell’s team hang around in the second half.