COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS: Notre Dame Rises to #3 During Bye Week; Irish Probably Should Be #1 — ND Only Top-5 Team to Beat Another Top-5 Team, As Currently Ranked

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

[click here to jump to polls] Notre Dame rose to #3 in both the AP and Coaches Poll during their bye week, thanks to previous-#2 Ohio State getting blown out at Purdue.  The Fighting Irish are the only top-5 team that has beaten another top-5 team, as currently ranked. That fact alone should have propelled Notre Dame into the #1

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

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[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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COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS: Undefeated Notre Dame Still Nurses Top-10 Ranking, Even After Lackluster Wins Over Unranked Opponents; Meanwhile, Only Two Future Opponents Remain Ranked

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

[click here to jump to polls] Despite two close calls in a row against unranked Ball State and Vanderbilt, Notre Dame has sustained their #8 ranking in the unofficial AP and Coaches Polls. Of perhaps greater interest in the long run, only three Notre Dame opponents are still ranked, down from five in the preseason polls. Notre Dame’s two remaining

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

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

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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COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS: Notre Dame Cracks Top-10; College Football AP and Coaches Polls; Six Notre Dame Opponents Ranked, Seventh Receives Votes

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[click here to jump to polls] After previously riding a 5-1 bubble against an unexpectedly padded early-season schedule, Notre Dame now has cracked the top-10 in both the AP and Coaches Polls, following their first win over an opponent nationally ranked at game-time. The now-6-1 Irish are 1-1 against opponents ranked at game-time, 2-1 against opponents currently ranked. The first College Football Playoff

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IRISH NEWSLINK: “2017 College Football Rankings – Preseason” – ESPN

File Photo of Football on Turf with Yardlines

1  Alabama(49) 0-0 1603 — 2  Ohio State(5) 0-0 1512 — 3  Florida State(4) 0-0 1434 — 4  USC 0-0 1415 — 5  Clemson(7) 0-0 1367 — 6  Penn State 0-0 1257 — 7  Washington 0-0 1245 — 8  Oklahoma 0-0 1237 — 9  Michigan 0-0 959 — 10  Wisconsin 0-0 936 — 11  Oklahoma State 0-0 912 — 12

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS: Coaches Poll Top-25, Sept. 11; Notre Dame Climbs to #18 After Win Over Nevada

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With their 39-10 victory over Nevada, Notre Dame rose to 1-1 on the year and climbed to #18 in the latest College Football Coaches Poll, released Sunday, Sept. 11. They climbed three spots from their previous ranking of #21. The Coaches Poll top-25 is below, with Notre Dame opponents highlighted. The team that upset Notre Dame in double-overtime the previous

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COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS: AP Top-25, Sept. 11; Notre Dame stays at #18

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With their 39-10 victory over Nevada, Notre Dame rose to 1-1 on the year and stayed at #18 in the latest AP College Football Poll, released Sunday, Sept. 11. The AP top-25 is below, with Notre Dame opponents highlighted. The team that upset Notre Dame in double-overtime the previous week, Texas, also won, and is just outside the top-10. Next

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