What the unexpected loss to NIU means for Notre Dame’s CFP hopes
After starting the season with a 23-13 victory over Texas A&M at Kyle Field, Notre-Dame suffered a stunning defeat in Week 2 against NIU. On Thursday, Blue and GoldTyler Horka explained how the loss could affect Notre Dame’s chances of College Football Playoff.
“You have to win,” Horka said“The loss is bad and the CFP committee takes that into account. Who did you beat that is really good? Who did you maybe lose to that isn’t so good? And look, NIU is now ranked 25th in the country. If that keeps up, maybe this loss isn’t as bad as we think it is. NIU could end up winning the MAC and getting into the playoffs themselves.
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“(Marcus Freeman) was in a situation last year where Notre Dame had to be on top of the standings — that’s what it felt like — to try to get into the CFP, and they ended up losing to Louisville pretty early on, and that was over. Now it feels like they have to be on top of the standings with 10 games left, and that’s a daunting task.”
In the 16-14 loss, Notre Dame’s offense was lackluster, managing just 286 yards while committing two turnovers, both of which were caused by interceptions. The Fighting Irish offense wasn’t entirely to blame. Notre Dame’s defense allowed the Huskies a total of 366 yards.
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Although Notre Dame’s performance was not optimal, the Fighting Irish’s season is far from over. The team still has high-caliber opponents like No. 19 Louisville, State of Florida and No. 11 USC ahead of schedule.
Nevertheless, Horka knows that the Fighting Irish cannot look too far into the future.
“It’s week to week for Notre Dame right now, but they can easily get back to a point where they only have that one loss,” Horka said. “There’s a chance this team could be in contention for the College Football Playoff again at the end of November, but that’s only if they continue to win all of their games, because I think the next loss could be a death blow.”
“At the beginning of the season, we asked ourselves, ‘Is this Notre Dame schedule good enough to get the Irish 10-2 into the playoffs?’ Now, after losing to a team we thought we were sure to beat, it feels like it’s 11-1 for Notre Dame or no College Football Playoff.”
On Saturday, Notre Dame will try to win the showdown against Purdue at 3:30 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast live on CBS.
