Notre Dame football: What are realistic expectations after the bye week?

The Notre Dame football team goes into their bye week sitting at 2-2, so what are realistic expectations for them after the break?

Going into their bye week, the Notre Dame football team knew they needed a big win on the road against the North Carolina Tar Heels. Thanks to some strong play by quarterback Drew Pyne, making his second collegiate start, and a tough run game, the Irish were able to accomplish that, beating UNC by the score of 45-32.

It was a dominant effort from a team that has struggled to play consistent football all season long.

Now, the attention turns to the rest of the season, where the Irish will look to get back into the national picture after not being voted on even once in terms of the AP Poll. They have some excellent games ahead of them, including against two teams ranked in the top-6 right now, so the opportunity is there for them to turn some heads.

However, after four games, what can we really expect from the Irish the rest of the way?

Notre Dame football good enough to run the table

Head coach Marcus Freeman has already said the team is going to be working through the bye week, as they have a lot of things to shore up going into the final eight games of the season. They start off with a tough matchup, taking on a ranked team in BYU right out of the bye week, so the Irish will be tested right away.

Since halftime of the Cal game, we have seen a different team under Freeman, one that is focused on getting into the backfield on defense, and running over teams with an incredibly talented group of running backs. That is the formula they are going to need moving forward.

Notre Dame football: Irish once again get zero AP Poll votes

The Notre Dame football team looked very good in their win over the North Carolina Tar Heels, but still are getting no love from the AP.

In the end, I would think the Irish will lose two more games this season, finishing with an 8-4 record in Marcus Freeman’s first season as head coach. Sure, they have enough talent to run the table, but with question marks on both sides of the ball, and some depth issues, beating the likes of Clemson, BYU, USC, and even Syracuse, could prove to be tough.