Cam Newton's blunt take on Notre Dame reveals old problems still haunt the Irish
Cam Newton, the 2010 Heisman winner and 2011 no.1 overall pick, joined ESPN First Take and called out Notre Dame football and their recent history. Newton's take outraged Irish fans from all over the nation as the Fighting Irish are 11-1 with one of the nations best rushing attack and best defense in the country.
Notre Dame has received some negative criticism in recent national media, including from Penn State head coach, James Franklin, who called out the Irish and stated everyone should be in a conference.
Cam Newton Hot take on ESPN about Notre Dame football
“Nobody wants to see Notre Dame in there too. Notre Dame is college football Dallas Cowboys.” Newton stated on ESPN First Take.
Notre Dame football is 0-8 in their last New Year Six bowl games, and their last major bowl win was in 1994 in the Cotton Bowl over Texas A&M. The similarity between the Cowboys and the Irish is there. Since 1996, the Dallas Cowboys are 5-13 in the playoffs and haven't made it to the NFC Conference Championship since 1995-'96 season, which was their last Super Bowl win.
“Do they have a legacy organization and program? Absolutely. Rudy. Rudy. There is no such thing as a Cinderella story in college football." Newton explained on why Notre Dame should not be in the playoffs this year. "Every time you try and root for the underdog they get smashed.”
“News flash, I can tell you what is going to be the result of somebody playing Notre Dame, especially if it is Alabama, they going to blow the doors off them.”
The Irish last national championship was back in 1988, when Notre Dame beat West Virginia by a score of 31-24. Since then, Notre Dame has been back to the championship one time and lost 42-14 to Alabama in the 2012 BCS Championship game.
The records and similarities between Notre Dame and the Dallas Cowboys are evident, and the case that Notre Dame is College Football "America's Team" is understandable since they play on National TV every week, but Cam Newton doesn't have the stats or numbers to explain why the Irish should not be in the College Football Playoffs this year.
Do the Irish have a lot to prove this year? Yes. Is the pressure is on them because they have a home playoff game against Indiana? Yes. However, the Irish won 10 straight and outscored their opponents 441-134 in that stretch. Irish fans can't deny the history as of recent and understands there is pressure on this Notre Dame team to get over the hump. Even ESPN College Football analyst talked about the pressure on the Irish and he has been one of Notre Dame national supporters as of recent.
"The long question about Notre Dame is, can they do it in the playoffs?" Greg McElroy stated on Notre Dame and the pressure on them. "We have seen them do it in the regular season, we have seen them get to the playoff, but we have yet to see them be them super competitive in the playoff."
Notre Dame lost in the first-round both times they were in the four-team playoff format by 27 to Clemson in 2018 and by 17 against Alabama in 2020. The Fighting Irish recent history isn't on their side as Marcus Freeman first game as Head Coach was against Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl. where the Irish blew a 28-7 lead and lost 37-35 in 2022.
Notre Dame will look to turn the tide and beat not only the Indiana Hoosiers, but the narrative that the Irish can't win big games and prove to Cam Newton and others that they deserve to be in the dance. Irish and Hoosiers face off on Dec. 20 at 7:00 on ESPN and look to earn their first major bowl win in over 30 years and advance to the Sugar Bowl against the Georgia Bulldogs on Jan.1.