Last week, the College Football Playoff committee gave Notre Dame a harsh but honest message: win or go home.
After debuting at No. 11 in the initial College Football Playoff rankings, Notre Dame’s season hung in the balance on Saturday as it welcomed No. 1 Miami to town.
And to Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame’s credit, the short-handed Fighting Irish answered the call.
For as much that will be made about Miami playing without star wide receiver Malachi Toney, Notre Dame played without almost half of its starting defense from Week 1, and without star cornerback Leonard Moore for multiple possessions, which happened to both end in Miami touchdowns (Miami scored one touchdown all night when Moore was on the field).
Regardless, how high up will Notre Dame move with the huge win? Are we talking home playoff game or possible First Round bye?
Here’s a look at my projection for the College Football Playoff rankings following a whirlwind Week 10.
25. New Mexico
24. Boise State
23. LSU
22. Ohio State
21. South Carolina
20. Missouri
19. Arizona
18. USC
17. Oregon
16. Ole Miss
15. Houston
14. Wake Forest
13. Iowa
12. Texas Tech
11. Kentucky
10. BYU
9. Tennessee
8. Miami
7. Indiana
6. Texas
5. Notre Dame
4. UCLA
3. Alabama
2. Utah
1. Georgia
Nick Shepkowski’s Quick Thoughts
Miami falls from No. 1 and you have to wonder if this week they get punished in a big way. Last week, we were all told that Notre Dame lacked a marquee win, that’s why it started the rankings at No. 11. Well, Notre Dame has that marquee win now, but has anyone looked at Miami’s schedule? It beat Wake Forest, but the committee gave no love to the Demon Deacons last week.
Utah moves up after a big win over BYU, and Alabama beating LSU in Baton Rouge means you can’t drop the Crimson Tide, even if it has two losses. UCLA going on the road and beating Minnesota is huge, as it moves to 9-0 with a real shot at a 12-0 regular season.
Then we get into the range where I see Notre Dame checking in. Indiana had the week off but after how things went in the Big Ten for teams that it struggled mightily to beat (Nebraska, Ohio State, Minnesota, and Michigan all lost), then how is Indiana not punished a bit?
The question becomes how far Indiana and Miami fall and just how high Tennessee will get ranked after dominating Kentucky.
All of a sudden, are we looking at a potential Notre Dame vs. Iowa First Round matchup in the CFP?
That’s my best guess as to where Notre Dame will be ranked, but really, the question is what position is it going to be in regarding a First Round bye once the regular season ends?
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