Notre Dame football: 10 wins has to be the floor for the Irish in 2022
By Brad Weiss
The Notre Dame football team does have a tough schedule in 2022, but to do anything special, ten wins have to be the floor.
It starts on the road, as the Notre Dame football team will travel to Ohio to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes in Week 1 of the 2022 college football season. Many experts expect the Buckeyes to be a preseason top-5 team, as they return a ton of talent, and should be a serious contender for the College Football Playoff.
When it comes to the 2022 Irish, they should have the same kind of expectations, and while they will likely open the 2022 season outside of the preseason top-5, they should be in the top 10. That would make this Week 1 matchup primetime television, and a great test for a Notre Dame football team with a brand new head coach in Marcus Freeman.
Looking at the rest of the schedule, there are some very daunting games, rivalry games, and some games they should dominate. It is not going to be an easy season by any means for the 2022 Notre Dame football team but based on their roster, and potential NFL talent, they should be able to hang with every team they line up against.
Notre Dame football to navigate tough 2022 schedule
We have already discussed the toughest part of the schedule for the Irish in 2022, as that will be the final four games of the season. Within that stretch are games against Clemson and USC, two teams that could be serious playoff contenders by the time these two teams kick-off.
However, there is also a tough game against BYU on the slate, as well as an away game against North Carolina, which will be their first-round game since Week 1. All four of those games will be tough tasks, and when you consider the Irish open against Ohio State and close the regular season against USC, it is a very tough schedule to navigate.
Despite the tough schedule, ten wins has to be the floor for the 2022 Notre Dame football team, as no three-loss team has ever made the CFP. Of course, two losses will make it hard to earn a spot too, but if they can go at least 10-2 during the regular season, the CFP, or a big-time bowl game is in play.
That has to be the floor.