The way the season is going, it certainly appears that Notre Dame football controls its own destiny as we approach the College Football Playoffs. However, it seems that some people don’t believe that the Irish are going to the playoffs at all. A bowl game would be a rather massive disappointment.
Most projections still have ND going to the playoffs. However it looks like they’re not going to host a game. Instead, they’ll be a lower seed and trying to pull off an upset.
USA Today’s Austin Curtright released his personal projections earlier this week and he has Notre Dame football as the 11th seed. And he has them taking on none other than 6th-seeded Ohio State.
Notre Dame football readies for revenge game in CFB if one analyst is correct
The entire bracket shows some interesting picks:
- Oregon*
- Georgia*
- Miami*
- Iowa State*
- Penn State
- Ohio State
- Texas
- LSU
- Tennessee
- Clemson
- Notre Dame
- Boise State
The first round matchup would be a rematch of a 2022 and 2023 home-and-home series against Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio. The Buckeyes took both games, but neither game was anything close to a blowout. One has to wonder if a third time could be a charm for the Irish.
The Buckeyes won the first contest in 2022 by a score of 21-10 in Columbus, and it was much closer in 2023, as Ohio State went into South Bend and needed a final drive to get a 17-14 win.
If the Notre Dame football isn’t able to get a higher seed and host a playoff game, it feels like this would be one of the more positive matchups for Irish fans as Marcus Freeman and company are very familiar with what the Buckeyes want to do.