It was a bittersweet weekend for Notre Dame football, as it had to watch eight of the twelve College Football Playoff teams start the pursuit for a championship.
The Irish’s omission eventually pushed them the opt of a playing in a bowl game, with multiple potential players not wanting to suit up. While the move was criticized, other teams did the same and skipped playing in the postseason.
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Those other teams weren’t good enough to be viewed as a legit contender to win a title, so Notre Dame’s situation was a bit different. After watching the complete first round of the CFP, here is a thought after watching each game this weekend, with a Notre Dame twist.
Alabama gets a road win over Oklahoma
While Alabama may have “stolen” a spot from Notre Dame, as this point, you could make the argument that Oklahoma did the same. The Sooners had a few impressive wins, but they weren’t all that convincing. They scored over 40-points just twice all year, against Temple and Kent State, but did have some very good defensive showings which helped their cause. The Crimson Tide showed that they belonged, while it was the Sooners who didn’t.
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The Notre Dame bowl: Miami defeats Texas A&M
If you didn’t see, the Hurricanes head coach and a player called out the Irish following the game, as they seemed to think that they were playing someone else. This will just be ammo for next season, as the two teams will be in South Bend this time. Sure, Miami won the game, but like Oklahoma, did they really show they belonged? The Aggies out-gained them on offense, had more costly penalties, but did win the turnover battle. The Hurricanes still scored just 10 points on Texas A&M’s defense, while Notre Dame put up 40. While I think that the Aggies did earn a bid, I’m not quite sure they were better than the Irish by the end of the season.
Tulane getting blow out by Ole Miss was the committee’s worst fear
Look, I’m all for inclusion of Group of 5 teams, but there has to be a qualifier with higher standards. Tulane didn’t even put up a fight, as Ole Miss started fast and never looked back. There’s not doubt in my mind that Notre Dame is better than the Green Wave, and would have been a much more competitive game for the Rebels.
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Oregon continues G5 domination, as they blowout James Madison
Now this was the second bad game for the CFP committee, as another G5 team got beat soundly, this time James Madison getting trounced by Oregon. The Ducks clearly took their foot off the gas in the second half after taking a 48-13 lead midway through the third quarter. The final of 51-34 is a bit deceiving, as it was clear that while the Dukes do have a good team, better than Tulane, they still aren’t at the level that Notre Dame is at. This might have been karma for them doing plenty of talking leading up to the game as well.
Quick final thought on Notre Dame missing this CFP
Like I’ve said before, this will always be a season of what-if’s, considering at least two of these first round losers aren’t as good as Notre Dame. We’ll always wonder if the Irish could have done what they did in 2024, and make a run at a championship.
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This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Notre Dame-centric thoughts on the CFP’s first round games
