Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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4 NOV. 14, 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED S trength of schedule — or a lack thereof — will remain a popular talking point this month when debating whether a hypothetical two-loss Notre Dame team deserves a playoff spot if that is the fate the Irish face when the 12 postseason bids are passed out Dec. 6. Some broadcast analysts and countless internet "experts" in- sist that Notre Dame's regular- season schedule is too soft to de- serve any playoff consideration if it loses more than one regu- lar-season game. But based on qualification comparisons with several other playoff contenders, that theory doesn't hold up. Obviously, there is no way to call the 12 Irish opponents any kind of murderers' row. But Notre Dame's slate — which in- cludes six ACC teams, three Big Ten teams and one Big 12 team — stacks up comparatively well with several other programs that were all ranked ahead of the Irish when the initial College Football Playoff rankings were released Nov. 3. In fact, the highly regarded Jeff Saga- rin rankings — which blend schedule strength, quality wins, victory mar- gin and other metrics — actually still ranked Notre Dame No. 1 in the coun- try before the Miami game, slotting the Irish slightly ahead of No. 2 Georgia and No. 3 LSU. Heading into the Mi- ami matchup, Notre Dame's strength of schedule ranked No. 23 nationally, according to TeamRankings.com. Fo r c o m p a r i s o n 's s a ke , M i a m i checked in at No. 18, Indiana was No. 19 and undefeated Utah — which was ranked No. 3 in the first playoff poll — had a strength-of-schedule ranking of only 50th. Citing Notre Dame's lack of a "sig- nature win" yet this season, the CFP selection committee placed the Irish the Irish with a No. 11 ranking in its first poll, despite Notre Dame being ranked No. 4 in the Associated Press Top 25 that same week. Again, Notre Dame's 2026 schedule isn't loaded with heavyweights. But it's also not stuffed with cupcakes. The Irish beat Wisconsin of the Big Ten 41-13 at a neutral site in the sea- son opener. The Badgers responded with five wins in their next six games — including victories at Penn State and against Southern Cal — and even cracked the top 25. Notre Dame also won 37-26 on the road against an improved North Car- olina team of the ACC that took top- ranked Miami to the wire before falling to the Hurricanes 38-35 on Halloween. The Irish also welcome SMU from the ACC to South Bend Nov. 21. The Mus- tangs won six of their first seven games this season and have spent most of this year ranked in the AP Top 25. Notre Dame's other two remaining games are a home date against Boston Col- lege Nov. 14 and a trip to Syracuse in the regular-season finale Nov. 28, two more teams that have improved from last year and could reach bowl eligibility. And let's not lose sight of the fact that an officiating error involving the game clock — one that the Big 12 admitted to — cost Notre Dame one second and one final play to try to complete a comeback win in its 28-24 loss at BYU Oct. 17. Meanwhile, Miami will play only two ranked teams during its entire regular season, Notre Dame and Wake Forest. And Indiana — which ranked No. 4 in the initial CFP rankings — also plays only two ranked opponents this regular season, Southern Cal Nov. 14 and Ohio State Oct. 17, a game the Hoo- siers lost to the Buckeyes 19-15 in Bloomington. IU's nonconference schedule featured games against North Texas, Howard and Western Kentucky, three pillow fights the Hoosiers won by a combined score of 145-16. And while kudos are deserved for Utah after starting its season 8-0, the Utes have just three op- ponents ranked in the initial CFP top 25 on their regular-season schedule — Houston, BYU and Arizona. Notre Dame featured the nation's top-ranked defense and owned a scor- ing margin of plus-27.0 points per game entering the Miami matchup. But in a no-win perception situation for Notre Dame, the Irish detractors used a soft- schedule explanation for the blowout wins, instead of recognizing a team that was efficiently handling its busi- ness — all while key defensive injuries mounted. Obviously, much will change in the playoff rankings between now and when the final invites are passed out in about a month. But what also needs to change is the persistent narrative that Notre Dame doesn't deserve any playoff consider- ation with two losses, when the Irish have played a similar schedule with similar results compared to programs that don't face similar scrutiny. ✦ Marcus Freeman's Irish entered November with a 7-1 record, but their strength of schedule remained a focal point in the debate over Notre Dame's playoff credentials. PHOTO BY MICHAEL MILLER Todd D. Burlage has been a writer for Blue & Gold Illustrated since July 2005. He can be reached at toddburlage@gmail.com UPON FURTHER REVIEW TODD D. BURLAGE Complaints Over Irish's Schedule Are Overblown