ESPN - Post-Spring Top 25

[CANONIZEFATHERSORIN]

I'd be very happy with the season if we finished 13th. All I want from ND football is consistent top 15 AP finishes. 10-3 and #13 in America would have me quite pleased.

 

[Reaper97]

Michigan, FSU, and Texas all waaaaaaaaaaaay too high. All three massively overrated. Think ND would beat all by double digits.

Michigan probably beats ND but double-digits.
I hate Michigan more than any other program in any sport, but they bring back a lot from a 13-1 team.

 

[Reaper97]

I don't get the hype with Michigan to be honest

They return a lot from a 13-1 team. The one position they lost, OT, they replaced with an upgrade in the portal (the Stanford kid ND wanted badly coming out of HS).
So Michigan’s OL will be good again, & they bring back their entire backfield (McCarthey, Corum & Edwards) & most of their WRs/TEs.
Their OOC schedule is the worst in the country & they get OSU at home.
They will probably go 11-1 or even 12-0 in the regular season again.

 

[Reaper97]

I'm nervous that they're going to get passed up by Oregon State pretty quickly. Did you hear about their new QB?

Is that the guy who is 0-2 versus ND?

Despite being the QB on undefeated Clemson teams both times and ranked #1 & #4 going into the games?

That QB?

 

[Katzenboyer]

Agree re FSU. They have almost everyone back from last year but how good were they last year? Nowhere's near #3 in the nation. I don't see it. They're rated higher than Alabama and Ohio St? Maybe regular season if their schedule turns out to be as easy as it looks but I can't see them winning a post season game vs the likes of Bama and Ohio St.

They also were incredibly fortunate to 1) catch LSU before BK had the team playing well, and 2) run up against a Miami team that had been ransacked by the Manny Diaz era.

They have to play LSU opening weekend, and then travel to Clemson. They could easily be 2-2 going into the heart of the ACC schedule. Things certainly soften up from there, but they finished 10-3 and 3 of those wins were by a combined 14 points. That doesn't make me think they're the 3rd best team in the nation.

 

[NDRock]

I'd be very happy with the season if we finished 13th. All I want from ND football is consistent top 15 AP finishes. 10-3 and #13 in America would have me quite pleased.

If we lose to Clemson, Ohio State, and USC and then win some mediocre bowl ( like last year), I’d say we had a very mediocre season.

 

[irishff1014]

That’s their two game season. Difficult no doubt. But if they split that, worse than 11-1 would be disappointing.

I also don't really buy Clemson to be honest. Klubnik is probably going to be a stud, but hasn't shown it yet. They were soft last year, and they lost 3 of their 4 starting DL which was their top unit to the draft.

I'm surprised at everyone sleeping on FSU. This is the most talented and veteran team they've had since Fisher left by some margin.

The problem is they brought in Riley for the OC. Look at what he did with TCU in one year. He has much better weapons at Clemson. Right now i would say they are more worrisome then Ohio State.

 

[CoachB]

They return a lot from a 13-1 team. The one position they lost, OT, they replaced with an upgrade in the portal (the Stanford kid ND wanted badly coming out of HS).
So Michigan’s OL will be good again, & they bring back their entire backfield (McCarthey, Corum & Edwards) & most of their WRs/TEs.
Their OOC schedule is the worst in the country & they get OSU at home.
They will probably go 11-1 or even 12-0 in the regular season again.

I think they are vastly overrated. An average TCU team exposed them big time. They are top 10, but not top 2. They are just a bad matchup for OSU. But yes, their schedule is so putrid again that everyone will think they are good again until they run into a good team. I think ND matched up well with them. I don't think they would have been able to bully ND on the ground and McCarthey is inconsistent when playing a defense with a pulse.

 

[calvegas04]

surprised ESPN didn't try and sneak colorado on the list

 

[DONTH8]

Is that the guy who is 0-2 versus ND?

Despite being the QB on undefeated Clemson teams both times and ranked #1 & #4 going into the games?

That QB?

 

[forkbeard3777]

I think they are vastly overrated. An average TCU team exposed them big time. They are top 10, but not top 2. They are just a bad matchup for OSU.

I just don’t understand this. Ohio State is notably better than TCU. Ohio State had a better, more high explosive and high powered offense than TCU. Unlike Ohio State’s defense, TCU’s defense runs that 4-2-5 and is notorious for being undersized.

If you look at it on paper, one would think that Ohio State (not TCU) is a considerably worse matchup for Michigan. It’s crazy how things panned out.

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

Just like last year, right?

Do I have to explain italics for you?

 

[1rishftw]

all these "way too early" rankings are mostly filler and should be taken with a grain of salt.

 

[BleedBlueGold]

Michigan is still this year’s Michigan.

True.

They return a lot from a 13-1 team. The one position they lost, OT, they replaced with an upgrade in the portal (the Stanford kid ND wanted badly coming out of HS).
So Michigan’s OL will be good again, & they bring back their entire backfield (McCarthey, Corum & Edwards) & most of their WRs/TEs.
Their OOC schedule is the worst in the country & they get OSU at home.
They will probably go 11-1 or even 12-0 in the regular season again.

UM has benefitted from having one of the worst schedules of a "top tier" program over the last few years that I can remember. They essentially have one-game seasons.

They've built a solid roster, no doubt, and it's why they pummel their weak opponents.

I'd much rather see a 2-loss Bama team in a playoff over an undefeated UM based on SOS alone.

 

[CoachB]

Bama would have pummeled Michigan in the playoffs last year.

 

[Old Man Mike]

Still gotta hope for any Alabama losses we can get gentlemen.
The field is FAR from level yet. Just because Georgia is muscling in,
doesn't mean the recruiting trail has become green pastures. I'll
take any head-to-heads with Michigan rather than Alabama I can get.

 

[CANONIZEFATHERSORIN]

If we lose to Clemson, Ohio State, and USC and then win some mediocre bowl ( like last year), I’d say we had a very mediocre season.

Yeah it wouldn't be too exciting. But I've just long accepted my minimum standards for ND football. It stops me from getting hurt too badly

 

[BleedBlueGold]

ND has some question marks, no doubt. But so does USC, OSU, and Clemson. I think those are winnable games and games ND needs to desperately win to be taken seriously as a contender. I think 2-1 is the requirement for still making the CFP. I don't see how they get in by going 10-2 or worse. Protect home turf, lose a close one on the road....that'll be the recipe.

 

[phork]

Michigan, FSU, and Texas all waaaaaaaaaaaay too high. All three massively overrated. Think ND would beat all by double digits.

LOL. You don't get out much eh.

 

[forkbeard3777]

surprised ESPN didn't try and sneak colorado on the list

Give it time...that said, in my younger years, I grew up remembering CU consistently being a top-10 team. It's nice to hopefully have them back in the mix of things. For many years, those CU-Nebraska Black Friday games were some of the best.

 

[CoachB]

LOL. You don't get out much eh.

I stick by that a million percent. Don't believe the hype. Anyone can look good against bad opponents.

 

[Reaper97]

Give it time...that said, in my younger years, I grew up remembering CU consistently being a top-10 team. It's nice to hopefully have them back in the mix of things. For many years, those CU-Nebraska Black Friday games were some of the best.

My wife’s family is huge boosters at Nebraska (not her, she’s too smart for that school), & when I first met her we were in Arizona, so we came to her home in Omaha for Thanksgiving with ALL her family. That was the year Colorado blew out #1 Nebraska (but Nebraska still went to the total & got destroyed by Miami), and during the game a made a comment that Nebraska was going to get ran over, & her 25 year old cousin, who didn’t even know me, threw a metal fork at my face.
That’s how serious those people took that Nebraska/Colorado game in the late 90’s, early 2000’s.

 

[Old Man Mike]

Some of the commentary here seems pretty unbased in actual player reality to me.

I know that IE people hate Michigan, but these players look REAL GOOD on paper.
They have SEVEN transfer portal players of whom 5 or even 6 will start --- this will
include two veteran offensive tackles and the center. (a Remington finalist.) PLUS,
Blake Corum is returning. Defensively that sounds like a BIG problem.

 

[CoachB]

Some of the commentary here seems pretty unbased in actual player reality to me.

I know that IE people hate Michigan, but these players look REAL GOOD on paper.
They have SEVEN transfer portal players of whom 5 or even 6 will start --- this will
include two veteran offensive tackles and the center. (a Remington finalist.) PLUS,
Blake Corum is returning. Defensively that sounds like a BIG problem.

Sadly, for this reason I do think they will be better than last year. Darn transfer portal. They had recruited abysmally and were due for a drop off.

 

[Fbolt]

My wife’s family is huge boosters at Nebraska (not her, she’s too smart for that school), & when I first met her we were in Arizona, so we came to her home in Omaha for Thanksgiving with ALL her family. That was the year Colorado blew out #1 Nebraska (but Nebraska still went to the total & got destroyed by Miami), and during the game a made a comment that Nebraska was going to get ran over, & her 25 year old cousin, who didn’t even know me, threw a metal fork at my face.
That’s how serious those people took that Nebraska/Colorado game in the late 90’s, early 2000’s.

I hope u pummeled him

 

[NDdomer2]

I stick by that a million percent. Don't believe the hype. Anyone can look good against bad opponents.

Only ND can look bad against bad opponents

 

[Reaper97]

I hope u pummeled him

It was a her.

 

[SeekNDestroy]

It was a her.

Point stands.

 

[Reaper97]

Point stands.

I told her maybe she should be playing OL for Nebraska…my wife (gf at the time), grabbed me & said we should just go hang out because she knew I didn’t give two shits about roasting her fat cousin.

 

[Irish#1]

1. Georgia
2. Georgia
3. Georgia
4. Georgia
5. Georgia
6. Georgia
7. Georgia
8. Georgia
9. Georgia
10. Notre Dame
11. Alabama
12. Clemson
13. USC
14. Oregon
15. TCU
16. Oregon State
17. Kansas State
18. Tulane
19. Texas Tech
20. UNC
21. Ole Miss
22. Texas - San Antonio
23. Kentucky
24. Wisconsin

This is what I cam up with after reading the comments.