How Notre Dame football benefited from all that Week 6 chaos

This past weekend in college football delivered chaos, upsets, and surprising results, dramatically shaking up the playoff picture. Though Notre Dame Football didn’t take the field, the fallout from these upsets may have made the Irish one of the biggest beneficiaries of the weekend. With key teams suffering losses, the Blue and Gold's path to the College Football Playoff (CFP) is still within reach.

Let’s break down how the Irish stand to benefit, considering their remaining schedule and strong résumé.

Key upsets shake up the playoff picture for Notre Dame Football

The most significant development from the weekend was the losses suffered by seven top-25 teams, including No. 1 Alabama, No. 4 Tennessee, No. 9 Missouri, No. 10 Michigan, No. 11 USC, No. 22 Louisville, and No. 25 UNLV. On one hand, this is good for a Notre Dame Football team that will need an at-large bid to make the playoff.

Seeing top teams in the P4 conferences who are in the hunt for a conference title suffer losses certainly helps Notre Dame (as long as they continue to win). However, in terms of boosting Notre Dame Football’s strength of schedule in the eyes of the committee, losses by USC and Louisville aren’t ideal. Irish fans will still need to root for these teams to win out, especially in the case of USC, as Notre Dame will want to face a Top-25 team in their season finale.

On the flip side, Texas A&M—whom Notre Dame beat in their first game of the season—soundly defeated No. 9 Missouri, giving that win extra legitimacy. Currently, according to ESPN’s FPI, Notre Dame Football’s strength of schedule ranks 43rd. While much of this is out of the Irish’s control, I believe Notre Dame indirectly benefited from Week 6's chaos.

Notre Dame football’s remaining schedule

One reason Notre Dame Football is in such a favorable position is their remaining schedule. The Irish have already faced one of their toughest challenges with their win in College Station against Texas A&M. While Notre Dame Football’s lone loss to Northern Illinois hurt at the time, Irish fans will now hope the Huskies can compete for the MAC title to boost that loss’s optics.

Notre Dame Football’s remaining schedule isn’t as easy as people thought going into the season. Army and Navy are two of the better G5 teams, both undefeated and possibly looking to make a push to be the G5 representative in the expanded playoff. Georgia Tech has proven to be better than expected, beating Florida State to open the season (though that win doesn’t look as impressive now), and they recently handed Duke their first loss. Notre Dame also faces a Virginia team currently sitting at 4-1 (2-0 in the ACC), and of course, the season finale against USC.

A lot can change between now and the end of the season, but if the Irish can run the table—and they currently have the best win-out percentage in the country—they could be positioning themselves for a playoff berth, with Week 6’s chaos potentially playing a pivotal role.

Final thoughts on Notre Dame football's playoff path

Though Notre Dame Football didn’t play this past weekend, they might have emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries. The upsets across college football have widened the door for the Irish to make a run at the College Football Playoff. With top-25 teams stumbling and vulnerability among their remaining opponents, Notre Dame has a chance to control their own destiny.

Their challenging schedule, with upcoming games against Army, Navy, and USC, presents Notre Dame Football with opportunities to secure signature wins that will impress the CFP selection committee. If they can navigate their remaining games without further losses, Notre Dame will have a strong case for inclusion in the final twelve. This past weekend’s chaos has set the stage for an exciting second-half run, and the Irish could very well be one of the biggest beneficiaries by season’s end.