Category: Featured Article

In ‘Notre Dame’s’ absence, ESPN’s unofficial ‘College Football Playoff’ gets off to a lackluster start, risks lapsing into irrelevance as credibility eroded

Bowl Games, College Football Playoff, College Football Rankings, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

It might be interesting to find out how many Americans realize ESPN’s ad hoc, would-be “college football playoff” (CFP) is not actually official and cannot actually award an NCAA national championship. Like the AP and Coaches Polls that have long awarded mythical national titles, or like its BCS predecessor, even the expanded version of the ESPN mini-tournament relies on the

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Even if 3-loss Alabama won the would-be ‘CFP’ bracket, they still would not qualify for an actual National Championship; Crimson Tide season not good enough, and ‘CFP’ has no official authority to award an actual NCAA National Title

College Football Playoff, College Football Rankings, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

The would-be “College Football Playoff” (“CFP”) technically does not have the authority to award an NCAA national championship. To have credibility and see its results coincide with third-party rankings and assessments, it would need to include the best teams and have a bracket-winner who qualified for a national title based upon time-honored basic fundamentals. They could only hope that, by

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VIDEO: Marcus Freeman on the ‘Today Show’ talking about the ‘Here Come The Irish’ docuseries, College Football Playoff, coaching changes, words of motivation and more …

College Football Playoff, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Marcus Freeman, Videos
Marcus Freeman file photo adapted from defense.gov image with credit to Kamran Chotalal

Marcus Freeman talks with the Today Show’s Al Roker, Savannah Guthrie and Sheinelle Jones about Season Two of the “Here Come the Irish” docuseries; what it’s like having a film crew follow the team; the College Football Playoff; collegiate coaching shakeups; words of motivation; and more … [“Here Come the Irish” link goes to one online viewing option that, for

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‘Notre Dame’ drops to #10 in College Football Playoff rankings, just above being eliminated; Irish would play at Texas A&M in first round, then go up against Indiana

College Football Playoff, College Football Rankings, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

The last nonbinding, interim College Football Playoff (CFP) rankings of the season were released Tuesday evening, to be followed next Sunday by the rankings that actually set the playoff pairings. Despite winning big on the road last Saturday, the Fighting Irish dropped to #10, as Alabama climbed to #9 after narrowly beating an Auburn team with a losing record. ‘Notre

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NCAA staff falsified last week’s College Football Playoff bracket to include a Miami (Fla.) team that did not qualify

College Football Playoff, College Football Rankings, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, NCAA
NCAA Headquarters Facade

When last week’s College Football Playoff (CFP) rankings came out, Nov. 25, 2025, NCAA staff, posting at ncaa.com, falsified their provisional College Football Playoff (CFP) bracket to include a Miami (Fla.) team that actually did not even qualify for the Playoff. Even though that bracket was tentative and unofficial, it still was held out as “based on the current committee

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That time Notre Dame played past 2 A.M. ET — and almost got beaten by a Hawaii team with a losing record, before heading to the Sugar Bowl

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day, Irish Lore
File Photo of Moon and Venus in Night Sky adapted from nasa.gov image with credit to Bill Dunford and NASA

So how difficult can it be, for Notre Dame to play in a far-flung western time zone, when forced to play past 2 a.m. Eastern Time? Lou Holtz had Notre Dame going to major bowls on an annual basis, competing regularly for national championships and winning one consensus national title. In 1991, even before the regular season was over, they

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VIDEO: Jeremiyah Love Joins the Set on ‘Wake Up the Echoes,’ Official Show of the Fighting Irish, also featuring Marcus Freeman, Isaiah Dunn, Tony Simeone

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Heisman Trophy, Irish Game Day, Marcus Freeman
File Photo of Word of Life Stone Mural Mosaic, Featuring Christ with Arms Upraised, On the Hesburgh Memorial Library at Notre Dame

‘Notre Dame’ Football dropped 10 touchdowns in the highest-scoring game in nearly a century, and who better to talk to than the guy scoring half the time he touches the ball? Running back Jeremiyah “J-Love” Love joins Coach Marcus Freeman and (host!) Isaiah Dunn to break down his stellar performance, including an insane 8-carry, 3-touchdown stat line. Jeremiyah shares wisdom

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‘Notre Dame’ should drop Stanford over abortion; Stanford University is one of four abortion schools on ‘Notre Dame’s’ 2025 football schedule, including three from the ACC

Catholic Ethical Issues, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
File Photo of Basilica of the Sacred Heart and Golden Dome at University of Notre Dame, with Trees in Foreground

Dropping abortion-school Stanford likely means dropping ‘Notre Dame’s’ partnership with the ACC, a conference riddled by abortion schools. The Catholic Church regards abortion as such a serious matter that procurement of abortion brings about automatic excommunication.  Yet at least one-fourth of ‘Notre Dame’s’ regular season football schedule includes abortion schools — Stanford, Miami (Fla.) and Pitt from the ACC, and

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‘Notre Dame’ should drop Pitt over abortion; University of Pittsburgh one of four abortion schools on 2025 schedule, one of three from ACC

Catholic Ethical Issues, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day

Dropping abortion-school Pitt likely means dropping ‘Notre Dame’s’ partnership with the ACC, a conference riddled by abortion schools. The Catholic Church regards abortion as such a serious matter that procurement of abortion brings about automatic excommunication.  Yet at least one-fourth of ‘Notre Dame’s’ regular season football schedule includes abortion schools — Miami (Fla.), Pitt and Stanford from the ACC and

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VIDEO: Australia Episode: Wake Up the Echoes, Official Show of the Fighting Irish 11.11.25, featuring Australian punter James Rendell, cornerback Isaiah Dunn, Marcus Freeman, Tony Simeone

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day, Videos
Satellite Dish File Photo

“Wake Up the Echoes: The Official Show of the Fighting Irish,” featuring Australian punter James Rendell, CB Isaiah Dunn, Marcus Freeman, Tony Simeone, including life, animals and food in Australia; Marcus Freeman samples vegemite 4.11.25

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‘Notre Dame’ climbs to #9 in College Football Playoff rankings; would play at Oregon in first round, then have rematch with Ohio State

College Football Playoff, College Football Rankings, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

The second College Football Playoff rankings were released Tuesday evening, with the Fighting Irish climbing to #9, their same ranking as in the most recent AP Poll and Coaches Poll. Their rise was attributable to BYU’s big loss to Texas Tech and the big Irish win over Navy. If the playoff bracket were formed today, #9 seed ‘Notre Dame’ would

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‘Notre Dame’ debuts at #10 in first CFP rankings; would play BYU in first round, then Indiana

College Football Playoff, College Football Rankings, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day, NCAA
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

The first College Football Playoff rankings were released Tuesday evening, with the Fighting Irish sitting at #10, their same ranking as in the most recent AP Poll and Coaches Poll. If the playoff bracket were formed today, #10 seed ‘Notre Dame’ would be playing #7-seed BYU in the first round, with the winner playing #2 seed-Indiana next. If the Irish

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Fighting Irish crack top-10 after road win over Boston College and continued attrition among ranked teams; final AP and Coaches Poll before CFP rankings

College Football Rankings, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

After ‘Notre Dame’s’ solid 25-10 road win over Boston College in Chestnut Hill Saturday, the Fighting Irish finally returned to the top-10 in the AP and Coaches Poll, amidst renewed reshufflings occasioned by multiple ranked teams picking up losses. Georgia Tech, Miami (Fla.) and Vanderbilt had been ranked ahead of the Irish but lost in upsets and dropped below them.

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VIDEO: Irish post-game press conference after victory over Boston College, with Marcus Freeman, CJ Carr, Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day, Marcus Freeman, Videos
Marcus Freeman file photo adapted from defense.gov image with credit to Kamran Chotalal

Head coach Marcus Freeman, quarterback CJ Carr and linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa talk with reporters after the Fighting Irish 25-10 road victory over Boston College in Chestnut Hill on All Saints Day 2025. (SCW – Nov. 1, 2025)

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VIDEO HIGHLIGHT: CJ Carr 44-yard touchdown pass to Will Pauling, temporarily putting the Irish ahead 12-0

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day, Videos
"We're # 1" Moses Sculpture at Notre Dame

With 1:53 left in the first half, ‘Notre Dame’ had a 1st and 10 at the Boston College 44. Quarterback CJ took the snap out of the shotgun and dropped back to around his own 46. Meanwhile, wide receiver Will Pauling streaked down the right hash about 12 yards before a quick, smooth move where he stepped one foot to

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VIDEO HIGHLIGHT: CJ Carr 40-yard touchdown pass to Malachi Fields, Irish go up on Boston College 6-0

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day, Videos
File Photo of Word of Life Stone Mural Mosaic, Featuring Christ with Arms Upraised, On the Hesburgh Memorial Library at Notre Dame

Eight seconds into the second quarter, on 4th down and 6 at the Boston College 40, ‘Notre Dame’ quarterback CJ Carr opened the scoring throwing, under pressure, a 40-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver Malachi Fields. After the Irish extra-point attempt hit the upright and bounced wrong, the score remained 6-0. The touchdown capped off an 85-yard drive that took

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VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS: ‘Notre Dame’ pulls away from North Carolina State in second half to win by four touchdowns

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day, Videos
File Photo of Word of Life Stone Mural Mosaic, Featuring Christ with Arms Upraised, On the Hesburgh Memorial Library at Notre Dame

After leading 10-7 at halftime, the Irish outscored the Wolfpack 26-0 in the second half to win 36-7. They outgained NC State 485 yards to 283 on the day, limiting the Wolfpack to 51 yards rushing. Sophomore QB CJ Carr threw for 342 yards on 19/31 passing (62%) with 2 TDs and 1 INT.

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College Football Rankings: ‘Notre Dame’ climbs into top-13 in AP Poll after solid win over North Carolina State

College Football Rankings, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

After pulling away in the second half to beat a good, yet unranked, NC State team 36-7, ‘Notre Dame’ climbed three spots in the latest AP Poll to now sit at #13.  With the regular season nearly half-done, the Irish (4-2) are one of only two 2-loss teams in the top-25, and are ranked ahead of multiple undefeated and 1-loss

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#16 ‘Notre Dame’ Fighting Irish vs. NC State Wolfpack restricted to Peacock streaming service; Peacock free trial period, then $16.99 per month within Amazon Prime Video; also includes NBC, at least some on-demand replays

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
File Photo of Computer, Tablet and Cellphone, adapted from image at energy.gov

[Click here for info about Peacock online streaming service as a special subscription within Amazon Prime Video] The #16 Fighting Irish and the Wolfpack kick off shortly after 3:30 p.m. ET, 2:30 CT, 1:30 MT, 12:30 PT, in The House That Rockne Built, on the (Comcast-owned, NBC-related) Peacock online streaming service, and on ‘Notre Dame’ Football Radio, SiriusXM 129, online

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College Football Rankings: ‘Notre Dame’ climbs into top-20 after solid Irish win over Boise State and upset losses by five then-top-20 teams, including two then-top-10 teams losing to unranked opponents with losing records

College Football Rankings, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

After ‘Notre Dame’s’ solid 28-7 win over Boise State at home on “Irish Wear Green” day, the Irish climbed five spots and jumped well into the top-20 at #16 in the AP and the Coaches Poll. Five top-20 teams lost over the weekend, three of them to unranked opponents. That included two then-top-10 teams, Penn State and Texas, losing to

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‘Diamond-in-the rough’ ‘Notre Dame’ has late-morning game time at Arkansas; Marcus Freeman looking like the right man for the head coaching job

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
File Photo of Word of Life Stone Mural Mosaic, Featuring Christ with Arms Upraised, On the Hesburgh Memorial Library at Notre Dame

#22 ‘Notre Dame’ Fighting Irish (1-2) vs. Arkansas Razorbacks (2-2) Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, AR Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025, 11 a.m. CT ABC, Sirius XM 129, ‘Notre Dame’ Football Radio [PDF 86pp] ‘Notre Dame’ game notes The Fighting Irish road game with Arkansas at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville is scheduled for 11 a.m. local

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Ara Parseghian: “You know what it takes to win …”

Ara Parseghian, Books, Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Lore
Ara Parseghian file photo adapted from va.gov image

In “Resurrection: The Miracle Season That Saved Notre Dame” by Jim Dent, we are taken back to Hall of Fame Coach Ara Parseghian‘s first team meeting as Notre Dame head football coach, in a Golden Dome auditorium: “… You know what it takes to win. Just look at my fist. When I make a fist, it’s strong and you can’t

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College Football Rankings: Big Irish win barely nudges them in the polls

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

After throttling Purdue 56-30 on Saturday, the Fighting Irish merely hold steady at #21 in the Coaches Poll and jump only two spots to #22 in the AP. Nevertheless, the Irish (1-2) are the only team with a losing record ranked at all. Indeed, they are ranked ahead of multiple 4-0 or 3-0 undefeated teams, as well as a team

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Irish might have to score early, score often against Purdue with possible storms rolling in

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
Lightning Means Gave Over, If you're at an outdoor sporting event ... When Thunder Roards, Go Indoors! with yellow artist's renditions of lightning, NOAA logo, background image of empty stadium seats, weather.gov/lightning

‘Notre Dame’ may be heavy favorites against Purdue, yet, aside from sitting at 0-2, the Irish might literally have storms on the horizon when they take on the Boilermakers. The latest forecast warns of a better-than-even chance of thunderstorms rolling in during the second half. The Irish already have a need for faster starts and sustained momentum, and the prospect

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Irish face urgency, and a pivotal matchup, but does ‘Notre Dame’ really have a “must-win” game with Texas A&M? Only if the Irish become good enough for the playoff

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Game Day
File Photo of Word of Life Stone Mural Mosaic, Featuring Christ with Arms Upraised, On the Hesburgh Memorial Library at Notre Dame

It may be true, at least at the moment, that #16/17 Texas A&M is the only remaining top-25 Irish opponent. Yet it seems a bit silly to couch “must-win” game status within the notion that an 0-1 ‘Notre Dame’ is somehow a playoff contender. Nevertheless, there still should be a sense of urgency to “right the ship” addressing weaknesses and

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Winless ‘Notre Dame’ rises in AP and Coaches Poll during bye week; Irish now only winless team in Top-25; Reminiscent of unranked Irish jumping into top-20 after losing Lou Holtz’s first game

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U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

Another week into the season, ‘Notre Dame’ is now the only winless team in the top-25.The Irish rise to #8 in both the AP and Coaches Poll, still sitting at 0-1 after an early bye week. One recalls how, in Lou Holtz’s first game at ‘Notre Dame,’ the Irish became the first, possibly only, team to open the season unranked,

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Marcus Freeman almost always loses the week after a long-distance night game, including against Northern Illinois; This year’s early bye week is a stroke of luck for the Irish

Featured, Featured Article, Headlines
Marcus Freeman file photo adapted from defense.gov image with credit to Kamran Chotalal

During his brief head coaching tenure, Marcus Freeman has gone 2-4 the week after a long-distance night game, 1-3 against unranked opponents. More than a third of Freeman’s total career losses as a head coach have come the week after a long-distance night game, 4 losses out of 11. Curiously enough, the only opponent he has beaten the week after

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NEW YEAR’S DAY FOOTBALL: When Notre Dame Played a Regular Season Game on New Year’s Day — 8 Years Before the First Rose Bowl

Featured Article, Headlines, Irish Lore

Notre Dame’s first New Year’s Day football game was not the 1925 Rose Bowl, when Knute Rockne, the Four Horsemen and the Seven Mules beat Stanford to cap off a 1924 National Championship season. According to the Notre Dame Football Media Guide’s game-by-game history, Notre Dame’s first New Year’s Day game was on January 1st, 1894, in a regular season

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University of Pittsburgh Trains Abortionists and Notre Dame Should Drop Them, Even If It Means Leaving the ACC

Featured Article
File Photo of Basilica of the Sacred Heart and Golden Dome at University of Notre Dame, with Trees in Foreground

The Catholic Faith regards abortion, the deliberate killing of innocent human life in her mother’s womb, as such a serious evil that Catholic Canon Law provides automatic excommunication for abortion.   Yet Notre Dame’s football schedule and conference affiliations are riddled with open and notorious abortion providers and trainers of abortionists.   The University of Pittsburgh is one of them.

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS: Undefeated Notre Dame Sustains #8 Ranking; College Football Playoff Implications Next Week

College Football Rankings, Featured Article, Headlines, Notre Dame Football News
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

[click here to jump to polls] After their strong road win over Wake Forest, Notre Dame sustained their #8 ranking in the AP and Coaches Polls, as the Irish head into a two-game gauntlet against the only ranked opponents still looming on their schedule. In the next two weeks, Notre Dame has #7 Stanford at home before taking on Virginia

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PRESEASON TOP-25: Notre Dame Has Top-11/12 Perch For Plausibility Run, Perhaps Not a National Title Run

College Football Rankings, Featured Article, Headlines
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

[click here to jump to polls] Notre Dame’s preseason #11/12 ranking should be enough of a perch for them to attempt what has become an annual Road to Plausibility. (By comparison, it might be a little hard to think of Notre Dame making a would-be “national title run” since, according to the official record books at least, they have not

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IRISH & OPPOSITION DEPTH CHARTS: Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest – Dual-Column Depth Charts

Featured Article, Headlines, Notre Dame Football Depth Charts & Rosters, Notre Dame Football Game Day, Notre Dame Football News, Notre Dame Football Players, Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest
Saint Joseph's Lake with Golden Dome and Basilica of the Sacred Heart in the Distance

[click here to jump directly to depth charts] Notre Dame and Wake Forest depth charts follow below in a responsive layout, with parallel dual columns on a regular desktop or laptop view; with smaller screens, columns might jump down and stack up.  Keep in mind that Brian Kelly sometimes features extensive rotation at some positions.  This year, right tackle, especially, is a shared position.  … Alizé Mack is still

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NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL TICKETS: Notre Dame Still Has Tickets Available For Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest

Featured Article, Headlines, Notre Dame Football News, Notre Dame Football Tickets, Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest
"We're # 1" Moses Sculpture at Notre Dame

As of the wee hours of the night heading into game day, Notre Dame still has tickets available for general public sale for Notre Dame vs. Wake Forest in Notre Dame Stadium, Saturday, Nov. 4, 2017, kickoff shortly after 3:30 p.m. ET. As of this posting, there still are a limited number of tickets available, ranging from $70 to $110. 

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Notre Dame Penciled Into College Football Playoff With Four Games Left; Irish #3 in NCAA’s CFP Poll Based on Strength of Schedule

Bowl Games, College Football News, College Football Playoff, College Football Rankings, Featured Article, Headlines, Notre Dame Football News
U.S. Map, adapted from image at usda.gov

Reality imitates overhype in the NCAA’s inaugural College Football Playoff (CFP) rankings of 2017, with Notre Dame penciled into the playoff at the #3 spot. Georgia, source of Notre Dame’s sole loss, is at #1, in part because of their 1-point win over Notre Dame. The committee chairman reportedly credited Georgia and Notre Dame’s strength of schedule as factors in

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