The 2019 schedule is insane

[Sea Turtle]

Good grief, are we TRYING to miss the playoffs?


Opponent
Sept. 2 at Louisville
Sept. 7 Bye
Sept. 14 New Mexico
Sept. 21 at Georgia
Sept. 28 Virginia
Oct. 5 Bowling Green
Oct. 12 USC
Oct. 19 Bye
Oct. 26 at Michigan
Nov. 2 Virginia Tech
Nov. 9 at Duke
Nov. 16 Navy
Nov. 23 Boston College
Nov. 30 at Stanford

 

[Nothingman]

Not trying to be condescending, but how long have you been a Notre Dame fan? A difficult schedule is as much a tradition as gold helmets.

I do agree with you though (As do many others) that we don't really do ourselves any favors by having a meat grinder of a schedule every year.

 

[Sea Turtle]

Not trying to be condescending, but how long have you been a Notre Dame fan? A difficult schedule is as much a tradition as gold helmets.

I do agree with you though (As do many others) that we don't really do ourselves any favors by having a meat grinder of a schedule every year.

I've been a fan since 1988. Challenging is one thing but this is just over the top. 6-6 is a very real possibility here.

It's not like we are Alabama or Ohio State(who I understand are coming on the schedule as well). We just aren't powerful enough for this type of schedule. And even they don't schedule like this.

 

[IrishLion]

I think the ‘18 schedule is worse.

The travel in the later part of the year for ‘18 turns games that are already potential traps into legitimate concerning scenarios.

 

[stlnd01]

Is it weird that doesn’t strike me as unusually bad?
Yes we go to Michigan and Georgia (and Louisville) and I don’t love the back six weeks without a breather.
But who knows how good Michigan and Louisville will be, and otherwise it’s pretty standard. If we go 6-6 it’s because we’re not very good.

Edit: Aside from the atypical later season road game against Michigan (which kind of replaces a trip to Clemson/FSU/Miami), and the last three games against typically tough physical opponents, that actually sets up OK for us, I think. We have New Mexico before Georgia, Bowling Green before USC, and a bye before Michigan. Breathers before our three biggest games. That’s unusual..

 

[Nothingman]

I've been a fan since 1988. Challenging is one thing but this is just over the top. 6-6 is a very real possibility here.

It's not like we are Alabama or Ohio State(who I understand are coming on the schedule as well). We just aren't powerful enough for this type of schedule. And even they don't schedule like this.

I fell in love with Notre Dame in 1988 as well.

The only comfort I can offer is that prior to the 2012 season, the schedule looked brutal. MichSt on the road, Oklahoma on the road, U$C on the road, scUM, Stanford, Navy on another continent to open the season in addition to the usual pesky opponents like Purdue, Pitt, and BC. Despite this, ND overcame.

 

[BabyIrish]

Is it weird that doesn’t strike me as unusually bad?
Yes we go to Michigan and Georgia (and Louisville) and I don’t love the back six weeks without a breather.
But who knows how good Michigan and Louisville will be, and otherwise it’s pretty standard. If we go 6-6 it’s because we’re not very good.

Edit: Aside from the atypical later season road game against Michigan (which kind of replaces a trip to Clemson/FSU/Miami), and the last three games against typically tough physical opponents, that actually sets up OK for us, I think. We have New Mexico before Georgia, Bowling Green before USC, and a bye before Michigan. Breathers before our three biggest games. That’s unusual..

Exactly. Almost seems Bamaesque the way it was devised.

 

[loomis41973]

Doesn't look bad to me. How many of those teams will be good in a couple years? Last 5-6 games could be a great streak, depending on the year.

I will wait to worry until after this year.

 

[Circa]

I've been a fan since 1988. Challenging is one thing but this is just over the top. 6-6 is a very real possibility here.

It's not like we are Alabama or Ohio State(who I understand are coming on the schedule as well). We just aren't powerful enough for this type of schedule. And even they don't schedule like this.

so I take It you were born in 88'? I actually think we'll do great and after we win the playoff's this year everyone will mark us on their calendar with a trophy they'll be trying to steal. BK imho has turned the corner and we are playing and recruiting with fire.

It's only takin a bit of time to overcome the treachery of our past mistakes, but these new kids coming up see what it is we stand for.

 

[phork]

Good grief, are we TRYING to miss the playoffs?


Opponent
Sept. 2 at Louisville
Sept. 7 Bye
Sept. 14 New Mexico
Sept. 21 at Georgia
Sept. 28 Virginia
Oct. 5 Bowling Green
Oct. 12 USC
Oct. 19 Bye
Oct. 26 at Michigan
Nov. 2 Virginia Tech
Nov. 9 at Duke
Nov. 16 Navy
Nov. 23 Boston College
Nov. 30 at Stanford

Suck it up nancy.

 

[Sea Turtle]

Suck it up nancy.

Ok, I'll take my 8-4 and like it!

 

[Sea Turtle]

so I take It you were born in 88'? I actually think we'll do great and after we win the playoff's this year everyone will mark us on their calendar with a trophy they'll be trying to steal. BK imho has turned the corner and we are playing and recruiting with fire.

It's only takin a bit of time to overcome the treachery of our past mistakes, but these new kids coming up see what it is we stand for.

I hope you're right. But for a program that hasn't won 10 games or more in a row for about 20 seasons now, we sure dont schedule very intelligently.

 

[irishtrain]

Not trying to be condescending, but how long have you been a Notre Dame fan? A difficult schedule is as much a tradition as gold helmets.

I do agree with you though (As do many others) that we don't really do ourselves any favors by having a meat grinder of a schedule every year.

Wouldn't want it any other way-best schedule in America year in and year out. Too bad other teams don't do this instead of hiding behind an over/blown conference schedule---do you hear me sec sec sec fans

 

[snoopdog]

Wouldn't want it any other way-best schedule in America year in and year out. Too bad other teams don't do this instead of hiding behind an over/blown conference schedule---do you hear me sec sec sec fans

It’s not just schedule, it’s the ridiculous travel grind that ND has to endure, which imo wears than down year after year in November.

No other P5 team would make it this hard on themselves with zero benefit

 

[Wingman Ray]

It's not like we are Alabama or Ohio State(who I understand are coming on the schedule as well). We just aren't powerful enough for this type of schedule. And even they don't schedule like this.

Bama nor OSU schedule anything remotely like this. This is a recipe for a losing schedule. ND is not a powerhouse and dominating team. ND barely beats most of the teams on that schedule and loses as well. Whoever scheduled this kind of schedule has a MUCH higher opinion of ND football than reality.

 

[IrishFanJMercy]

Most important game this year is Michigan Game we win it sets the tone for the year we lose they can fall fast

 

[BabyIrish]

Bama nor OSU schedule anything remotely like this. This is a recipe for a losing schedule. ND is not a powerhouse and dominating team. ND barely beats most of the teams on that schedule and loses as well. Whoever scheduled this kind of schedule has a MUCH higher opinion of ND football than reality.

All the traveling minus Stanford for 19 isn’t that far, although does anyone know what the Shamrock series will be for 19?
The road games are pretty spread out, the tough matchups are spread out, I actually think this is a great schedule for us who are still independent.
This year’s schedule is a whole other story, not well done at all.

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

All the traveling minus Stanford for 19 isn’t that far, although does anyone know what the Shamrock series will be for 19?
The road games are pretty spread out, the tough matchups are spread out, I actually think this is a great schedule for us who are still independent.
This year’s schedule is a whole other story, not well done at all.

Yeah, I'm with you and Lion who also said the same above. This schedule in 2018 is brutal enough on paper, then you add up the miles they are traveling in Oct and Nov, it makes you wonder what Swarbrick was thinking when he put this together. Taking a home game away and playing Syracuse in NY is probably my biggest bugaboo. Would have been a lot nicer for the troops to go to San Diego, Home (FSU), Home (Syracuse), @ Stanford.

Swarbrick didn't do BK any favors to get rid of the November blues this season. Just have to take it one week at a time...

 

[zelezo vlk]

 

[RDU Irish]

Good grief, are we TRYING to miss the playoffs?


Opponent
Sept. 2 at Louisville
Sept. 7 Bye
Sept. 14 New Mexico
Sept. 21 at Georgia
Sept. 28 Virginia
Oct. 5 Bowling Green
Oct. 12 USC
Oct. 19 Bye
Oct. 26 at Michigan
Nov. 2 Virginia Tech
Nov. 9 at Duke
Nov. 16 Navy
Nov. 23 Boston College
Nov. 30 at Stanford

That four week stretch of USC, Bye, @ Michigan and VT has to be one of the toughest four weeks in the country even with the bye. UGA, USC and Michigan will have top 10 talent - their 2016/17 classes will be in full stride and USC/UGA combined to secure about half of all 5 stars in the 2018 class - USC was #3 with only 18 recruits. That makes for some impact contributors coming in as sophomores in 2019.

Per rivals team rankings:
2016 - #4 Meatchicken, #9 UGA, #10 USC
2017 - #3 UGA, #4 Meatchicken, #6 USC

Not very many teams in the country would be able to go 3-0 in a three week Navy, BC, Stanford lineup to finish the season. Navy softens you up for BC and/or Stanford to steal one from you.

 

[stlnd01]

That four week stretch of USC, Bye, @ Michigan and VT has to be one of the toughest four weeks in the country even with the bye. UGA, USC and Michigan will have top 10 talent - their 2016/17 classes will be in full stride and USC/UGA combined to secure about half of all 5 stars in the 2018 class - USC was #3 with only 18 recruits. That makes for some impact contributors coming in as sophomores in 2019.

Per rivals team rankings:
2016 - #4 Meatchicken, #9 UGA, #10 USC
2017 - #3 UGA, #4 Meatchicken, #6 USC

Not very many teams in the country would be able to go 3-0 in a three week Navy, BC, Stanford lineup to finish the season. Navy softens you up for BC and/or Stanford to steal one from you.

Given recent history at Stanford, it would hardly be a steal. Has Kelly ever won at their place?

I wouldn’t read too much into recruiting rankings for Michigan and USC though. They routinely underperform their rankings. Let’s see how good those teams actually are before we start setting ourselves.

 

[Some Irish Bloke]

Given recent history at Stanford, it would hardly be a steal. Has Kelly ever won at their place?

I wouldn’t read too much into recruiting rankings for Michigan and USC though. They routinely underperform their rankings. Let’s see how good those teams actually are before we start setting ourselves.

Not sure if this was rhetorical to prove your point, but we haven't won there since '07 during Charlie's amazing 3-9 campaign. So your point is definitely valid. I would hardly call a loss to Stanford a game that was stolen from us.

 

[RDU Irish]

Given recent history at Stanford, it would hardly be a steal. Has Kelly ever won at their place?

I wouldn’t read too much into recruiting rankings for Michigan and USC though. They routinely underperform their rankings. Let’s see how good those teams actually are before we start setting ourselves.

The point is three physical teams in a row to end the season are going to be hard for any team to sweep. In isolation - we should be favored against Stanford but in context of the entire season this set up is exactly why they beat us in Cali all the time.

Michigan has not recruited like this for a very long time. At the point we play Michigan, they will either be feeling their oats on a roll or a wounded animal needing a notable win. With the stack of mature talent in the Big House they will be dangerous - a lot more dangerous than kicking off this year.

USC always has elite skill that can go on a tear if you let them. They can beat anybody if they show up to play.

But yes, by pure definition they both "underperform" if they don't finish in the Top 10 based on their recruiting - beating us goes a long way to living up to those expectations.

 

[stlnd01]

The point is three physical teams in a row to end the season are going to be hard for any team to sweep. In isolation - we should be favored against Stanford but in context of the entire season this set up is exactly why they beat us in Cali all the time.

Michigan has not recruited like this for a very long time. At the point we play Michigan, they will either be feeling their oats on a roll or a wounded animal needing a notable win. With the stack of mature talent in the Big House they will be dangerous - a lot more dangerous than kicking off this year.

USC always has elite skill that can go on a tear if you let them. They can beat anybody if they show up to play.

But yes, by pure definition they both "underperform" if they don't finish in the Top 10 based on their recruiting - beating us goes a long way to living up to those expectations.

You could say the exact same things about us. Neither Michigan nor USC is obviously better than Notre Dame and too much will transpire in the next 18 month’s to start whining about them now.
I agree the last month is a physical grind, and after clearly running out of gas in November in both 2015 and 2017 I’m not sure why we continue to schedule that way. But we do. That’s why depth is so important, IMO, and for the first time in a long time, we appear to have it at most positions. Of course, a lot can transpire in 18 months.

 

[snoopdog]

I just checked

Michigan's
Alabama
OSU
PSU
Wisconsin's

Travel schedule this upcoming season on a whim, and basically nobody travels anywhere of distance, except OSU goes to TCU

That's 5 top level P5 teams , that refuse to travel outside 500 miles.

I don't no how to square the circle, of making it extremely difficult to compete, while having sky high expectations for success??

 

[BabyIrish]

I just checked

Michigan's
Alabama
OSU
PSU
Wisconsin's

Travel schedule this upcoming season on a whim, and basically nobody travels anywhere of distance, except OSU goes to TCU

That's 5 top level P5 teams , that refuse to travel outside 500 miles.

I don't no how to square the circle, of making it extremely difficult to compete, while having sky high expectations for success??

The only way for us to travel less would be to join a conference. As an independent with the playoff designed the way it is, I don’t see how we can travel less and soften our schedule unless we part ways with our west coast teams and put Michigan and MSU back on the schedule.

 

[snoopdog]

The only way for us to travel less would be to join a conference. As an independent with the playoff designed the way it is, I don’t see how we can travel less and soften our schedule unless we part ways with our west coast teams and put Michigan and MSU back on the schedule.

That's what I was thinking......as well as adding Indiana, Illinois and Purdue, regularly.

These matchups never impact OSU's playoff chances

 

[RDU Irish]

The only way for us to travel less would be to join a conference. As an independent with the playoff designed the way it is, I don’t see how we can travel less and soften our schedule unless we part ways with our west coast teams and put Michigan and MSU back on the schedule.

Yeah - Navy in San Diego and Syracuse in Yankee Stadium... totally can't imagine a way to cut any miles out of our schedule. ND is obsessed with creating an "event" as many weeks as possible out of the 12 game season. Dump Stanford and only hit Cali every other year and you got another big travel improvement plus one less PIA opponent to replace with a second tier P5 like Purdue or Northwestern or Maryland or Illinois or Indiana (and that is just the B1Got)

I am happy to see Bowling Green and New Mexico in 2019, IMO better low tier of the schedule than usual. We need a third on that level, IMO - I mean everyone else is playing two FCS teams every year before they even get to their FBS cupcakes. Consider their fan bases get to pay for those games in their season ticket packages - which are usually seven games, not six (and an eighth neutral site game for only 4 true road games). They pay for seven games and get one decent home game a year on average.

 

[RDU Irish]

When you don't do home/home series (like Bama and OSU) you get an extra home game and it doesn't matter where the opponent comes from (see New Mexico). WTF would you swap out Stanford for MSU or Michigan when you could increase your home games by one and schedule Wyoming something similar.

 

[stlnd01]

That's what I was thinking......as well as adding Indiana, Illinois and Purdue, regularly.

These matchups never impact OSU's playoff chances

Why don’t we just join the Big Ten, then?
One year-end road trip to California is not the problem. ACC travel isn’t really the problem either. It’s going to some far flung coastal city for Navy road games, and having the stupid Shamrock Series game, and doing it all back to back to back in the second half of the season that gets to be a grind.