BTF

Considering many dubbed that team as one of the greatest college football teams ever, I'll give you 9 out of 10. I can't argue with that statement. But they better take notice because the Big Ten is for real. Minnesota proved that yesterday. Big Ten #6 beats SEC #3/4.

Lol. Am I hallucinating or did you just write that? He completed 60% of his passes for 3000 yards and 34 touchdowns against 6 interceptions with a QB rating of 149. Notre Dame is a pre-season playoff contender with him coming back. Early prediction for 2020. Notre Dame gets their signature win in South Bend on November 7th . But they might have one loss going into that game. Wisconsin will be really jacked up and ready to play in Lambeau. Clemson wasted Alabama because..........well, they just wasted them. They really only beat ND in the second period when Julian Love went down with an injury. Clemson did what a good coaching staff would do and go after his replacement. They scored 3 touchdowns...........boom, boom, boom. They scored one touchdown in the second half after he returned. Comical that not one person on ESPN aka Fake News acknowledged that fact. They just used the score as an opportunity to pounce on the Irish. Agree.

I think you are referring to 2012. I felt like Notre Dame was the best team outside of the SEC. No one wanted to see an all SEC title and ND fit the bill with their undefeated record. I think the throttling of Oklahoma on their home field was an eye opener that set themselves apart from some of the other contenders...........that was a good win. Undeserving? I don't think so, but I do admit there were two or three SEC teams that year who may have been able to meet ND.

Who would have been your fourth team last year? Please don't say Ohio State. Kirk Herbstreit went to bat last year for the Buckeyes and showed how biased he was in the process. I had the Irish as a 10 pt favorite over the Bucks last year.

Wouldn't that disqualify USC? They've been anything but impressive over the last decade. And when they did do well it was because Pete Carroll was cheating. Alabama went through a down period between 1982 and 2008 where they posted only 3 conference championships. Texas has only 2 conference championships between 1997 and 2019 with none in the last decade. I have a hard time excluding Michigan and Notre Dame as the two winningest programs in college football history. The case for Notre Dame: Three 10 win seasons in a row. Two 11 win seasons in a row. College football appearance in 2018. National Championship appearance in 2012. The case for Michigan: Winningest program in history speaks for itself. Hard not to consider them a Blue Blood. They haven't had a national or conference championship in awhile, but they win their fair share of games.

Who are some of the teams to watch out for this fall? Out of the Summit City I think that team could be Carroll. They have many weapons returning from a team that beat Snider and lost to Dwenger by a touchdown. They could possibly be the best team north of Carmel. Will they be? Only time will tell as there are many other good programs who will have a say. I like the direction Valpo and Warsaw are heading in. Snider, Penn, Homestead, Jeff, and Merrillville will always be solid. Elkhart?

My interpretation of a Blue Blood is more historical. I look at the body of work over a lifetime. If a team had 10 national championships but posted a losing record 20 years in a row, I'd still consider that team a Blue Blood based on past performance. There needs to be another name for those who have had the most success in the past decade.

I agree. Football is just better when the traditional power programs are doing well. I don't mind USC so much when ND is on the winning side of the rivalry.

I just came across this article. It's from 2016, but it looks pretty good. According to ESPN, college football boasts 8 Blue Bloods. Clemson moves up the list from #17, but still not worthy of Top 8 status. https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/17336754/alabama-crimson-tide-notre-dame-fighting-irish-ohio-state-buckeyes-oklahoma-sooners-usc-trojans-lead-list-college-football-blue-bloods

Lol, neither have I. What are some of the legitimate reasons? I did find it kind of comical that he brought up the missed field goal and a potential pick 6 when interviewed at halftime...................why even bring that up? He knew the Tigers were getting their a--es handed to them.

Oklahoma's not even the 10th best team in the country.

Actually, Clemson should defect and go to the SEC or Big Ten. But why would they? They are pretty much guaranteed an undefeated season in the ACC. All they have to do is blow out their opponents in impressive fashion and the playoffs will come calling. If ND does ever join a conference, I hope it's the Big Ten. But then they'd have move ALL sports over from the ACC. Who knows what the future will hold. Will probably remain independent. Now, if they lose at home next year in a close game to Clemson (figuring that's their only loss) and still miss the playoffs, then a move toward conference affiliation will be taken seriously. Next year they'll have their opportunity against Wisconsin at Lambeau and at home against Clemson. Hopefully Stanford and USC improve next season.

The playoff committee deemed them one of the Top 4 teams in the country 4 of the past 5 years. That's why I have them as a Tier 1. They may not even be a Top 10 team this year, but past performance puts them toward the top in my opinion.

IU wins on Thursday..........or they come within a TD...........quote me. Those two are on a level playing field at the moment. I understand that Auburn embarrassed Purdue last year, but Auburn is a Tier 2 team where Tennessee is.................well, I don't even have a tier for them based on some of the losses they posted this year. They aren't a bad team, but they aren't good either. Lost to Georgia State. Destroyed by Georgia and Florida.

I can't speak for DT, but there are just too many ND haters out there. It's common knowledge. You either love 'em or you hate 'em. Notre Dame is one of the top programs in the country whether you like it or not.

Honest mistakes? Seriously? It's the playoffs. They had replays to get it right. They still blew it. Not an honest mistake. A very stupid one. I can live with it. On the bright side I don't have to see Fort Wayne littered with Ohio State fans donning their OSU wear . But if have any affiliation with OSU football whatsoever, then i'm pissed beyond imagination.

He seems pretty happy at OSU and motivated to get a championship. My gut tells me he'll be there for awhile. I agree, he could be a star at Air Force. But he REALLY wants to be a Hoosier! Go get 'em Charlie! He did a great job of getting Penn State out of the gutter. He just seems to have a hard time getting them to the playoff level. Not many who wanted to watch ND vs Iowa State or Penn State vs Memphis. I don't even remember who Florida's got, that shows how much I care. How about a match-up between ND, Florida, and Penn State. Sell-out crowd and good for ratings. But I get it. The bowls have affiliations with the conferences and their hands are tied. They are two or three four star athletes from being a playoff contender. Who wouldn't want to play for Kirk Ferentz? Great guy!

Unwarranted? Probably. Offensive.............maybe if you were on that SEC crew. But not to anyone on this forum. I can't argue with the fact that Clemson scored more points and Ohio State had more opportunities. But being pissed off that the ref's blew a call that cost the Buck's 7 points isn't a losers mentality. It's a "DO YOUR F.....ing JOB" mentality. Clemson's defense won the game inside the red zone. Congrats to them. But at the end of the day, the best two teams aren't playing for the national championship. The game was gifted to Clemson as a result of a bad call and self inflicted wounds (targeting and running into the kicker). Merry Christmas Tigers. That line was right above the quote. I probably shouldn't have included it. It was more informative than anything.

You have to look at the results on the field. You can't say that Tennessee and Texas A&M are on the same level as Notre Dame. Tennessee will more than likely lose to Indiana on Thursday. It's nice to say that they will have a good team in the future, but currently ND would waste them by four touchdowns. I would have ND as a 10 pt favorite over Texas A&M. Do those teams have wonderful futures ahead of them? Sure, why not. But currently, they aren't Notre Dame. Based what these programs did this year, what they did the last couple of years, and what the future holds, I see it like this: Top Tier: Clemson, Alabama, Ohio State, LSU Second Tier: Georgia, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Auburn Best of the rest: Penn State, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Florida, Baylor, Washington, Washington State, and Oregon

Plain and simple. ESPN: An SEC officiating crew worked the game. Williams also stood behind the overturned fumble, saying, "After the video, instant replay in the stadium as well as back at the video center, they both looked at it slow and fast and they determined when he moved, the ball was becoming loose in his hands and he did not complete the process of the catch." Referring to the scoop and score that was overturned. The officiating crew blew the call. Period.

I think, most years, and 8 team playoff makes sense. It gives the mid-major an opportunity to prove themselves instead of making t-shirts self-proclaiming themselves as champs. And it would give purpose to two more bowl games.

They didn't seem so far behind Georgia the last couple of times they played them. Both games could have gone either way. They are 2-0 against LSU over the last 6 years (this year is another story). It's kind of hard to back up your "far" behind statement. Slightly behind would make more sense. Unless you are implying that the coaching at ND is good enough to overcome the talent gap. Equal footing with Auburn and Florida. Ahead of Texas A&M and Tennessee.

Congratulations, because they ARE at at the top along with the SEC. They may not be as strong at the top (it's close though), but they do have some pretty good depth. Anyone with any brain activity whatsoever saw this one coming. Oklahoma would finish somewhere between 5th and 6th in the Big Ten. It's hard to take any football program west of Iowa seriously right now. Clemson, Alabama, and Ohio State are your Top 3. But can you honestly mention Georgia, Auburn, and Florida without giving Notre Dame any recognition? I get it, they don't have that signature win. So I'll take any abuse delivered until November 7, 2019. I'll say it here, I'll say it now. Clemson's winning streak comes to an end that day. I know that's a bold statement and November 8th could be a bad day for me on this forum, but I'll take my chances.

Ohio State got screwed. Yeah, it's mostly on them for not putting enough points on the board. But there were some questionable calls, especially the overturn on the scoop and score. And a few other self inflicted wounds including a running into the kicker that led to 7 and a targeting that led to 7. Clemson can start writing thank you notes to Ohio State, because that game was gifted to them. Clearly the best team on the field last night. Unfortunate the two best teams won't be playing for the championship.

For those who think there is no need for an 8 team playoff, look no further than 2019. For those in favor, look at years 2014-2018.