Notre Dame football: Did the first 2022 Coaches Poll get it right?
By Brad Weiss
The Notre Dame football team was listed as a top-5 squad according to the Coaches Poll, but is that a fair ranking for them heading into 2022?
On Monday, USA Today put out the first Coaches Poll for the 2022 college football season, and the Notre Dame football program was ranked No. 5 overall. For the Irish, this is their highest ranking since the 2006 college football season, but was it a fair assessment of this team heading into Marcus Freeman’s first season as a head coach?
The 2021 season ended on a strange note, as head coach Brian Kelly bolted for LSU after a regular season finale win against Stanford. That left Freeman in charge on an interim basis, and he has to prepare to play in a major bowl game, the Fiesta Bowl against the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
Both Oklahoma State and Notre Dame football were threats to make it to the College Football Playoff, and both fell short, making this a huge matchup. The Irish got out to a strong start, but faded late, and lost in Freeman’s head coaching debut.
In 2022, it is a brand new ballgame, as this program is officially Freeman’s, and many media outlets are high on the Irish.
A No. 5 ranking is right for the Notre Dame football team
It was the usual suspect kicking off the ranking, as Alabama was named the No. 1 team in the country to start the 2022 season. The Ohio State Buckeyes, who the Notre Dame football team will take on in Week 1 was ranked No. 2, followed by reigning national champion Georgia at No. 3.
Clemson and Notre Dame round out the top 5.
When you look at it, this is a great preseason ranking for the Irish, as they take on two of the top-4 teams in the country according to this poll. That allows them to control their destiny when it comes to the College Football Playoff, as a win against either of those teams could prove to be the difference between them playing in the four-team event, or not.
The Notre Dame football team is loaded on both sides of the ball, and they have a fiery young head coach on the sidelines who the players seem to love. It will be interesting to see what Marcus Freeman does in his first season as head coach, especially with such a tough schedule, but based on what we have seen so far, the Irish are in good hands with Freeman at the helm.