Notre Dame Opponent Recap: Irish Foes Have Strong Weekend
While the dizzying pace of change in college football makes for a brutal offseason, there’s no doubt that the transfer portal, NIL, expanded playoff, and conference realignment have created almost NFL-like parity in the sport and made for a wild and entertaining season. It seems like after each weekend we’re left wondering which teams are actually good, and it feels like any team in the top 25 could beat – or lose to – anyone else on any given Saturday.
Alabama had been left for dead just a couple weeks ago with head coach Kalen DeBoer being attacked for everything from his play calling to his wardrobe, but after a dominating victory at LSU the Tide are right back in the familiar thick of the playoff discussion. Speaking of LSU, there are real problems for Brian Kelly in the Bayou. His defense quit on the team and the supposedly impenetrable Tiger Stadium was maybe half-full midway through the third quarter. We’ll find out how strong the “fay-um-ly” bonds Kelly spoke of are in Baton Rouge in what figures to be an interesting offseason.
Another team that had been written off as all flash and no substance was Ole Miss. The Rebels inexplicably lost to Kentucky at home and blew a game at LSU that they never trailed in until the final play, and it seemed like more of the same from a Lane Kiffin team. However, Ole Miss dominated suddenly vulnerable Georgia on both sides of the line of scrimmage, holding the Bulldogs to just 3 points after an opening drive touchdown on a drive that started in the red zone due to an Ole Miss turnover.
Both #11 Alabama and #16 Ole Miss will need major help to play for an SEC title, but with big victories on Saturday remain very much alive for a CFP berth. Georgia remains alive but cannot afford another loss (especially given how unimpressive the Bulldogs have been, even in victory) while LSU is all but eliminated from contention.
The Big Ten held serve this weekend with #1 Oregon, #2 Ohio State, and #6 Penn State all securing dominating victories while #8 Indiana survived Michigan, but there were major shakeups in other Power Four conferences. In the ACC, #4 Miami fell at Georgia Tech as the Cardiac Canes’ penchant for falling into double-digit deficits in the fourth quarter finally caught up to them, while Virginia took down #18 Pittsburgh on the road. The victories by Georgia Tech and Virginia, along with Louisville’s win at Clemson last weekend, have dramatically increased the perception of Notre Dame’s schedule.
Meanwhile in the Big 12, #17 Iowa State lost at Kansas, eliminating the Cyclones from the CFP race. #9 BYU stayed undefeated with a 22-21 victory over rival Utah on a last-second field goal – with some major, major help from the officiating crew. And, don’t look now, but #20 Colorado quietly notched a 41-27 road victory over Texas Tech to seize sole control of second place in the conference. The Buffaloes are somehow flying under the radar but have a favorable closing schedule and are very much a threat to make the playoffs.
#10 Notre Dame remained in control of its own destiny for a playoff berth with a dominating 52-3 victory over Florida State in a result that showcased both the talent and depth of the Fighting Irish and the utter ineptitude of a Seminole team. Florida State lost by 49 points, yet it almost feels like they played better than expected, rushing for 120 yards and only trailing 21-3 at halftime. With the victory, Notre Dame extended its winning streak to 7 games and has a margin of victory of 33.8 PPG during that stretch. The nation needs to realize that the Irish are very much a title contender.
Now, let’s take a look at the Week 11 results for Notre Dame opponents.
Notre Dame Opponent Overall Record: 58-52
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 7-2 (5-1)
Week 11 Result: Bye
Recap: Texas A&M was able to sit back and enjoy the chaos in the SEC this weekend. The Aggies remain in control of their own destiny. After this weekend’s game against New Mexico State, if A&M takes care of business at Auburn and then beats rival Texas Thanksgiving weekend, they’ll play for the SEC title and be all but assured of a CFP bid, even with an SEC Championship game loss.
NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES
Record: 5-4 (2-3)
Week 11 Result: TBD – The Huskies face Akron on Wednesday, 11/13
Preview: Northern Illinois took down MAC leader Western Michigan last Wednesday and now faces 2-7 Akron on Wednesday night with a chance to secure bowl eligibility. Key to the Huskies’ offense has been the ground game. Northern Illinois has averaged 258.8 YPG in victories but just 152 YPG in losses. A matchup with the second-worst rush defense in the MAC favors the Huskies.
PURDUE BOILERMAKERS
Record: 1-8 (0-6)
Week 11 Result: Lost 45-0 at #2 Ohio State
Recap: Well, Purdue’s defense kept things close for awhile and the Boilermakers headed into halftime only trailing 21-0, but the offense was never able to put up much of a fight and Ohio State ran away with things in the second half. Purdue was outgained 433-206, committed 2 turnovers, and went just 2-12 on third down. There’s no rest for the Boilermakers either as #6 Penn State visits West Lafayette next Saturday, and with their Big Ten schedule this year, it’s fair to wonder if head coach Ryan Walters did something to upset the league office. Purdue will end the season having played 5 teams currently ranked in the top-10 – Oregon, Ohio State, Penn State, Indiana, and Notre Dame.
MIAMI (OHIO) REDHAWKS
Record: 5-4 (4-1)
Week 11 Result: TBD – The RedHawks face Kent State on Wednesday, 11/13
Preview: Don’t look now, but with Northern Illinois’ win over Western Michigan last Wednesday, the RedHawks are in a four-way tie for first place in the MAC. Chuck Martin’s team is on a roll, having won 4 games in a row. The RedHawks tested themselves in the non-conference with games against Northwestern, Cincinnati, and Notre Dame, and that experience seems to now be paying off. Miami hosts winless Kent State on Wednesday and with the victory will become bowl eligible. A MAC Championship remains very much in play, but after Kent State, the RedHawks have a challenging closing stretch against Northern Illinois and at Bowling Green.
LOUISVILLE CARDINALS
Record: 6-3 (4-2)
Week 11 Result: Bye
Recap: Louisville checked in at #22 in the first batch of CFP rankings and while the Cardinals would need some major chaos to make the playoff, a second straight double-digit win season remains in play. They’ll travel west to take on Stanford this weekend.
STANFORD CARDINAL
Record: 2-7 (1-5)
Week 11 Result: Bye
Recap: Stanford was off this weekend and looks to get back on track against #22 Louisville. Only Florida State’s ineptitude has kept Stanford out of the ACC basement in the Cardinal’s first season as conference members.
GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS
Record: 6-4 (4-3)
Week 11 Result: Won 28-23 vs. #4 Miami
Recap: Georgia Tech notched one of the biggest victories of the weekend, ending previously-undefeated Miami’s charade as a championship contender. The Hurricanes had won 3 games already when trailing by double-digits in the fourth quarter, but the Yellow Jackets were the more physical team from start to finish and secured the win by forcing a Cam Ward fumble with 1:48 remaining. With the victory, Yellow Jacket head coach Brent Key improved to 6-5 in his career against ranked teams, with all 6 of those victories coming while Georgia Tech was unranked. Georgia Tech passed for only 99 yards in the victory but gashed Miami for 271 rushing yards, despite losing RB Jamal Haynes to an injury early in the game. QB Haynes King was limited as a passer by his shoulder injury (and freshman Aaron Philo came in for passing situation), but King was relentless as a runner, rushing 20 times for 93 yards and the game-clinching score. With the win, the Yellow Jackets secured bowl eligibility for the second straight season and close against NC State and Georgia. You can bet this feisty Georgia Tech team would like nothing more than to hand rival Georgia a third loss and knock them out of the CFP.
NAVY MIDSHIPMEN
Record: 7-2 (5-1)
Week 11 Result: Won 28-7 at South Florida
Recap: Navy got back on track with a 28-7 victory over South Florida, which snapped a 2-game losing streak. During that losing streak, the Midshipmen had committed 8 turnovers, but they largely took care of the ball against the Bulls and won the turnover battle 3-1. Eli Heindenreich got Navy started with a 60-yard touchdown run on their opening possession, and Navy led 21-0 at the break. They would stretch the lead to 28-0 with a Blake Horvath touchdown run with 11:45 remaining in the game before USF scored a meaningless touchdown with just over a minute remaining to prevent the shutout. The Navy rushing attack, which had been limited against Notre Dame and Rice, found success early and often. The Midshipmen finished with 321 rushing yards and controlled the football for over 38 minutes. Navy still remains just a game out of first place in the American and controls their own destiny, with Tulane and Army still on the schedule. Next up is the Green Wave in Annapolis.
VIRGINIA CAVALIERS
Record: 5-4 (3-3)
Week 11 Result: Won 24-19 at #18 Pittsburgh
Recap: Sitting at 4-4 with 3 ranked opponents and a road trip to rival Virginia Tech remaining on the schedule, Virginia faced an uphill climb to get to a bowl. But, a gritty performance in a road victory over Pittsburgh Saturday night kept those hopes alive. The Cavaliers knocked Pitt QB Eli Holstein out of the game (albeit on a play they were flagged for targeting) and in his absence, the Virginia defense controlled things, holding Pittsburgh to just 292 total yards, a 40% completion percentage, and forcing 2 turnovers. On the offensive side, it wasn’t pretty, but QB Anthony Colandrea and his supporting cast did just enough to win. RB Xavier Brown accounted for 96 total yards and 2 touchdowns, and Notre Dame transfer Chris Tyree had his most impactful game as a Cavalier, leading the team in receiving with 4 catches for 42 yards. Colandrea turned the ball over twice, but still completed 66.7% of his passes and added 40 yards on the ground. Virginia heads to South Bend next weekend for a matchup with Notre Dame.
ARMY BLACK KNIGHTS
Record: 9-0 (7-0)
Week 11 Result: Won 14-3 at North Texas
Recap: In a game of contrast’s that pitted the nation’s second-ranked passing offense against the top-ranked rushing offense, Army’s physical style of play proved the difference. Army held the ball for 41:45, keeping the explosive North Texas offense on the sideline and holding the Mean Green to just 283 total yards, 217 yards below their season average. The Mean Green ended the game with only 6 possessions. The Black Knights were far from perfect and QB Bryson Daily showed some rust in his return from injury, but he still finished with 153 yards rushing and 2 scores. Army took a 7-3 lead into halftime but Daily was intercepted in the opening drive of the second half. The defense rallied to force a 3-and-out, and then Army embarked on a 21-play, 94-yard drive that took 13:54 off the clock in the second half and resulted in the game-clinching score. Army gets an extra week to prepare for arguably the program’s biggest game in decades against Notre Dame in Yankee Stadium.
SOUTHERN CAL TROJANS
Record: 4-5 (2-5)
Week 11 Result: Bye
Recap: The Trojans were off this weekend and host Nebraska on Saturday in a matchup of arguably the two most disappointing teams in the Big Ten.
Be sure to check out the Irish Breakdown message board, the Champions Lounge
Irish Breakdown Content
2024 Scholarship Chart
2024 Football Schedule
Notre Dame 2025 Scholarship Offers
2025 Commit Rankings - Offense
2025 Commit Rankings - Defense
2024 Recruiting Class Grades - Offense
2024 Recruiting Class Grades - Defense
———————
Become a premium Irish Breakdown member, which grants you access to all of our premium content and our premium message board! Click on the link below for more.
Be sure to stay locked into Irish Breakdown all the time!
Join the Irish Breakdown community!
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown YouTube channel
Subscribe to the Irish Breakdown podcast on iTunes
Follow me on Twitter: @CoachD178
Like and follow Irish Breakdown on Facebook
What's Trending
