Should Notre Dame football fans thank the College Football Playoff Committee for showing they'll absolutely leave them out if given the chance? Is Tuesday's College Football Playoff bracket more or less painful than the Fighting Irish thinking they're safe, only to be booted on the last weekend after a win?
In the first release of the College Football Playoff rankings, Notre Dame was slotted much lower than anyone (including the ESPN hosts) expected. At No. 11, the Irish are technically "in" as of today, but that ranking is more of a shot across Marcus Freeman's bow.
Here's how the CFP's proposed 24-team expanded playoff bracket would look if using the selection committee's rankings today. pic.twitter.com/Q5YXn3myun
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) November 4, 2026
Notre Dame football's No. 11 ranking spells tons of trouble for the rest of the season
For the last few weeks, especially after the BYU game, the question around Notre Dame has been whether, if they finish 10-2 for the second straight season, the CFP will snub them for the second year. As of Tuesday night, the answer is a resounding yes.
With the showdown against Miami on November 7, the rankings also confirmed that the Irish must beat the Hurricanes to get in. With the number of three-loss teams in the rest of the rankings, Notre Dame can't even really hope for enough upsets to get them back into the Top 12 if they lose on Saturday.
As it stands now, Notre Dame would travel to Kentucky who is the No. 6 seed in these initial rankings. Irish fans shouldn't start planning for a trip to Lexington though. If Freeman's squad does beat No. 1 Miami on Saturday, they should be able to jump up quite a bit.
The big question is how high they can jump after getting ranked so low. Despite being ranked No. 4 in the AP Poll, the Irish still seem unlikely to get a Top 4 seed.
The comments that CFP Chair Hunter Yurachek made show that if they lose to Miami, even if it's by one point, they'll fall far enough that they can't smell the Top 12 again this season.
"Notre Dame obviously ranked No. 11, the committee is impressed by their performance on both sides of the ball,” Hunter Yurachek said. “They’re a very good football team. When you look at Notre Dame’s schedule, and the wins that they have versus the teams that are ahead of them, they don’t have that signature win right now.
"They lost in their only Top 25 matchup at BYU. The next best win is on a neutral site against Wisconsin. They’ve got a great opportunity in front of them this weekend at home versus Miami to get that signature win that I think they need to move up in the rankings.”
As has been the case since January, Notre Dame needs to beat Miami in order to get into the College Football Playoff. In essence for the Irish, the playoffs start this Saturday.
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