Notre Dame football: Athlon Sports puts two 2022 Irish opponents in CFP
By Brad Weiss
The College Football Playoff is the goal for the Notre Dame football team in 2022, but will the four-team playoff feature two of their opponents?
Recently, Athlon Sports put out their College Football Playoff projection after spring practices, and the Notre Dame football team was nowhere to be seen. It was two of their opponents that made up the four-team playoff instead.
Both Clemson and Ohio State were named to the playoffs, and in fact, the Buckeyes would make their way to the championship game, where they would lose to Alabama. Georgia, Ohio State, Clemson, and Alabama making up the CFP is kind of a chalk pick for the publication, but Notre Dame football can change all of that with a win in Week 1.
In the marquee matchup of the opening weekend, the Irish take on Ohio State inside Ohio Stadium.
Notre Dame football has a golden opportunity in 2022
In a recent piece by our site, we discussed why the Week 1 matchup for the Irish is a very winnable game. Notre Dame has a ton of elite talent returning, including five possible first-round picks in the 2023 NFL Draft, so there is no reason to think the Buckeyes are going to walk away with the victory.
Also, it is Marcus Freeman’s first game in the regular season as the program’s head coach, and he will be going up against his alma mater in the Buckeyes. Ohio State has a bunch of elite talent as well, including multiple possible first-round picks in 2023, but Notre Dame football has as good a chance as any team on Ohio State’s schedule to come away with the victory.
Notre Dame will take on Clemson later on in the season, and by then, we have a good idea of how good both teams are. Both have question marks heading into next season, including at the quarterback spot, so we will have to see how things are lined up going into that matchup before we start predicting what may happen.
The Irish have a chance to make a serious run at the CFP and impact it in a major way even if they do not get in, so buckle up for what should be an incredible 2022 campaign.