No. 9 Notre Dame did all it could to impress the College Football Playoff selection committee on Saturday.
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The Irish didn’t put their offense out on the field against Syracuse until the score was 21-0 in the first quarter. ND didn’t let up, rolling over the Orange in a 70-7 laugher in front of 77,622 fans at Notre Dame Stadium.
Beating a three-win Syracuse program isn’t going to impress the committee enough to jump Notre Dame over No. 8 Oklahoma, which preserved 17-6 over No. 22 Missouri. But the dominant win was another way for the Irish to show consistency at being able to put teams away handily.
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ND’s running game and defense appear to be at a championship level. Running back Jeremiyah Love made a case to ascend to the Heisman Trophy rankings by adding 171 yards and three touchdowns on just eight carries against Syracuse.
However, Notre Dame’s chances of making the CFP took a dip because of the results of Saturday’s games. As Drew Mentock of Irish Illustrated pointed out, ESPN’s FPI rankings show the Irish now only have a 72.5 percent chance of making the CFP.
The Irish had a 75.6 percent chance of making the playoffs before Saturday.
“Notre Dame moves up to No. 3 in ESPN’s FPI rankings following last night’s 70-7 victory,” Mentock wrote. “However, their chances of making the college football playoffs dropped slightly to 72.5% due to other results from the weekend. The last two weeks should be interesting.”
No. 15 USC didn’t help Notre Dame’s cause. The best win on the Irish’s resume was defeated 42-27 by No. 7 Oregon. ND would have been helped by the Tigers upsetting the Sooners.
Notre Dame could have used a loss by No. 11 BYU or No. 12 Utah. Obviously, Miami defeating Virginia Tech keeps the possibility alive that the Hurricanes will jump the Irish for the final ranking.
The best news for Notre Dame on Saturday was Pittsburgh beating No. 16 Georgia Tech 42-28.
The Irish will be rooting for Pitt to beat Miami in Week 14. They’ll also hope Auburn beats Alabama in the “Iron Bowl” and No. 1 Ohio State takes care of business against No. 18 Michigan.
For more on the NCAA, head to Newsweek Sports.
