LOTS to play out but the numbers suggest Notre Dame is in a good spot matching up first round with Oklahoma (13 in F+) or Ole Miss (12th). Oregon (3rd) or Bama (8th) stand out as tougher matchups should somehow ND fall or Bama jump up. Hosting BYU somehow seems unlikely but would be ideal!

the CFP discourse is going to be exhausting this week but I'd bet on: 1. Oregon jumps Ole Miss (no one will really care, they just want the Egg Bowl and Lane news) 2. ND still > Miami (same tired Miami outrage) 3. Canes net same spot (either holding or jump Utes / slide behind Vandy)

if Miami somehow makes the ACC Championship they should have to take a blood oath that if they lose they forfeit the right to lobby for an at-large bid. you aren't one of the 12 best teams if you lose three times to this mess of an ACC, conference title game or otherwise

ok I thought they’d outscore them but this is wild

the S&T Notre Dame - Pitt review was sidelined this week, but threading a few nuggets below, back to regular programming next week. Pat Narduzzi's last 3 ND matchups combined: Irish 140, Pitt 25 Game within those games: ND Defense 36, Pitt offense 19 spreadsheetsandtailgates.substack.com

So many playoff takes make me think of the adage "Everything’s a conspiracy when you don’t know how anything works." Hard to believe so many people are this dim and yet.

It won’t last, but I liked the at BYU / Indiana projected CFP brackets way better than the at Oregon / Ohio State ones we will see this week!

☘️ new pod ☘️ @jessicasmetana.bsky.social and @mbryan.bsky.social were kind enough to hop on after the game last night and talk about Notre Dame blowing out Navy, Jeremiyah Love heroics, great defense, the poor ACC, playoff rankings, so much more. open.spotify.com/episode/2vmg...

ND-Boston College Review: -really strong foundational numbers marred by some loud mistakes and missed scoring chances -the Chris Ash defense is causing turnovers and havoc like Al Golden's did now -a caution on assuming Navy will go like last year open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

hand up, as soon as this made it out of drafts I had a feeling BC would be gross

YouTube TV rec: go old school, find local radio of the game you’d normally watch, build yourself a nice fire and tailgate it outside while you listen

USC Review: -the final score could have been so much worse for the Trojans -OL dominance set up Love & Price's historic days on a day CJ Carr didn't have it -I owe Chris Ash an apology -Don't take a break now when bad blood is peaking and SC has villains open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

Welp

scenario that’s totally in play Arkansas sucker punches A&M tomorrow, the dumbest football minds you know posit that Notre Dame‘s playoff hopes are now dead (lol still nope)

ND - USC Preview: -Limiting Maiava & the Trojan passing attack -Will SC abandon the run again? -Why converting scoring chances may decide the game -CJ Carr could feast, but has to protect the ball -Hoping for an inhospitable atmosphere for these cowards open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

Boise State review: 💥 With Leonard Moore back, the best Chris Ash's defense has looked (low bar). Is this bend but don't break formula sustainable? 👀 CJ Carr on an ok day (struggling with deep ball) still super productive 🥍 Jordan Faison making a leap open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

☘️new pod☘️ @mbryan.bsky.social and @andrewsmith.bsky.social break down Notre Dame's win over Boise State. The offensive line and running backs continue to thrive, and hey is the defense officially good again? Let's discuss. open.spotify.com/episode/76Vo...

Purdue Review: -Highlights from a dominant offensive performance -Lots of scary passing defense (Chris Ash) charts -A brief look ahead at Arkansas open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

answers here are basically a personality test of how much you like history / toxic rivalries / geography considerations and congrats, everyone has passed the test so far (iykyk)

SEC inspired....if you could pick 3 annual matchups to lock in for Notre Dame, who would they be?

Texas A&M Review: -Diving into the many issues with a low havoc, high explosives allowed Chris Ash defense -CJ Carr's strong early returns, especially on passing downs -Pros and cons of the ND run game revival (fix short yardage!) -A case for hanging in there open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

great Notre Dame/A&M breakdown by @mbryan.bsky.social but wanted to underline/bold the section on early scheduling, cannot abide the complaining about it. heck, there's a case you want to catch top teams early before they're fully formed, too. spreadsheetsandtailgates.substack.com/p/notre-dame...

saw texts from the future about the final play, couldn’t watch, and sat outside under a dark Texas sky listening to the rest of the game watch react and stayed out there a long time. We are so back (to getting stabbed in the chest by the team you care about)

call him CAsh because that man needs his contract bought out today (I am unwell)

A semi-preview of Texas A&M, looking at the 5 most important areas for the Irish to win on Saturday: open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

i need a moratorium on Dan Lanning hype speeches trending until he wins a playoff game. tip of the cap for eviscerating Mike Gundy after he talked too much, but can’t do this “elite motivator“ stuff when last two seasons had a CFP blowout loss and your rival beating you twice to miss it

☘️new pod☘️ @mbryan.bsky.social stopped in to talk about our levels of concern about different Notre Dame football factors going forward (feeling differently about offense vs defense). We also hit on some general thoughts on the season thus far. open.spotify.com/episode/4G93...

Miami Review Newsletter is Live: -Pulling apart a game the advanced stats saw as a coin flip -The key areas where Chris Ash couldn't replicate Al Golden's formula -ND early down run rate the lowest of the regular season since the 2024 game we don't talk about... open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

Curtis time

from my haters guide to CFP favorites: open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

very good defenses, yeah, but gross offense too

Now our nations eye turns to Steve

McAfee being up there with Corso is like having Michael Porter Jr introduce Tim Duncan at his HOF induction

Wake Forest is battling for their lives against Kennesaw State and their stadium DJ is playing Mo Bamba with the Deacs on offense, cinema

Haynes King is a perfect college QB to watch as a neutral observer, like Riley Leonard after a few beers, guaranteed action

the 5:30 ET kickoff yesterday spoiled us. ive been desperate for football since 2:30. No one should be working anymore, just start the Baylor game now

An important part of today's newsletter imo - it's awesome the Irish come into this season as a legit title contender but enjoy every step of the dang journey to (hopefully) get back to the championship game.

he’s still got it

Just before the Week 1 bell, it's the annual Notre Dame opponent preview. If you start reading now, Boise State and USF might be kicking off by the time you finish! open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

Do you look at preseason polls and power rankings and think no one deserves the top spot? Feeling in your gut this will be a chaos year in college football? Good news, it's the Hater's Guide to the 2025 college football playoff favorites* open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

Do you look at preseason polls and power rankings and think no one deserves the top spot? Feeling in your gut this will be a chaos year in college football? Good news, it's the Hater's Guide to the 2025 college football playoff favorites* open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

Clemson and LSU getting the 2nd / 3rd most votes to win the title is insane

after writing about my "all-in on 2026" theory on Friday, the newly announced Notre Dame captains all have another year of eligibility except Will Pauling 👀

Friday happy hour topics from the newsletter 🔌position power rankings week leads to some thoughts on NDs long term planning 🎙️missing Mike Tirico doing PBP 🏜️Arizona States aspirational fall camp set up ✍️ the fun in creating your personal CFB game log open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

☘️ Depth Chart Power Rankings ☘️ In podcast form, with @mbryan.bsky.social and @greg2126.bsky.social: open.spotify.com/episode/1iNN... In newsletter form, cramming a bunch of camp thoughts into one place: rakesreport.substack.com/p/rakes-repo...

AP poll adjacent: on Friday, an argument for why the imbalance in preseason love for Clemson vs Notre Dame doesn't check out that and much more, check it out (sorry to reference Friday happy hour on a Monday) substack.com/@spreadsheet...

Riley Leonard is starting an NFL game this season, book it

Gut reactions: -OSU #1 by that margin is eye opening -Will Stein is going to need to work magic with Dante Moore, or Oregon has a lower floor than OSU / PSU -Clemson #12 reflects how much they need to improve over '24 -More intrigued by teams that may overachieve on offense (OU, A&M, Iowa, Auburn)

Offseason Deep Dives finish with the Notre Dame defense - why I'm optimistic Chris Ash can replicate Al Golden's top-5 defense in 2025, the potential for more disruption this fall, and why turnover "luck" may be repeatable open.substack.com/pub/spreadsh...

Freaks List 2025: -roommmate who was super good at all sports / ND intramurals and became a coast guard rescue diver -friend who is almost 40 and somehow never hungover after drinking all day -all moms