See where Notre Dame football slotted in this week in the CFP rankings
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SOUTH BEND — Notre Dame football climbed one spot to No. 9 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings, released Tuesday evening, Nov. 11.
That puts the Irish (7-2) on a projected path to a first-round game at No. 8 Oregon (8-1). The winner of that projects to face top-ranked Ohio State in the quarterfinals.
Irish coach Marcus Freeman is 0-3 against Ohio State counterpart Ryan Day, including a 34-23 loss to the Buckeyes in last season’s CFP national championship.
Pittsburgh, which plays host to Notre Dame this Saturday, Nov. 15 at Acrisure Stadium, moved up a spot to No. 22. That’s the last chance for the Irish to pick up some rankings juice against a Top 25 foe before Selection Sunday on Dec. 7.
USC, the only ranked win for Notre Dame so far, moved up to No. 17.
Miami (7-2) climbed three spots to No. 15 and would hold the 11th seed in this week’s scenario. The Hurricanes outlasted Notre Dame in the season opener, 27-24, and received rare public backing on social media this week from the ACC’s official account, which highlighted Miami’s CFP credentials in direct comparison to Notre Dame’s.
“We have great respect for Miami,” CFP Selection Committee chair Mack Rhoades said on ESPN. “When you think about the eye test, they’re really talented, both sides of the ball. Obviously, the head-to-head with Notre Dame comes up, so a lot of conversation about Notre Dame: seven-straight (wins), better defensively than they were at the beginning of the year.”
After allowing 98 points through three games, Notre Dame’s defense has allowed 11.8 points per game over its past six outings. That run started with a 56-13 road win over Arkansas, whose AD, Hunter Yurachek, is one of 12 voting members on this year’s selection committee.
“It feels like the Arkansas game was the turning point for (Notre Dame) defensively,” Rhoades said on a media conference call. “We really like Notre Dame as a complete team.”
Notre Dame ranks ninth in scoring offense and 17th in scoring defense. That makes the Irish one of six FBS teams currently ranked in the top 20 in both categories.
Oregon, ninth in scoring offense and sixth in scoring defense, is one of four teams in the Top 10 in both categories. Indiana, Texas Tech and Utah are the others.
Rhoades, the Baylor athletic director, downplayed the relative weakness of the ACC as a league.
“We look at each team on its own,” Rhoades told ESPN. “We don’t look at conferences. We look at each of the teams, and I think for the ACC, when you look at their nonconference schedule, there really are no signature wins other than Miami versus Notre Dame.”
Texas A&M (9-0) remained at No. 3 despite second-ranked Indiana’s narrow escape on the road against Penn State. The Aggies, 41-40 winners over Notre Dame on Sept. 13, will close the regular season at No. 10 Texas.
Notre Dame is in strong position to earn a home playoff game for the second time in as many editions of the 12-team playoff. The Irish, seeded seventh in 2024, knocked off Indiana on a chilly night in South Bend last December.
First-round games will be held at campus sites on Dec. 19 and 20. This season’s CFP title game will be on Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens.
Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and NDInsider.com. Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: See where Notre Dame football landed in latest CFP rankings
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