ESPN predicts how Notre Dame will fare in the College Football Playoff
On Friday morning two ESPN analysts, Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach predicted how the College Football Playoff would play out and both of them had much different outlooks for Notre Dame.
They do think that the Irish will make the field of 12-teams, but with varying results. Bonagura has Notre Dame having a rematch of its season-opening game against No. 11 Miami as the No. 6 seed while Schlabach has the Irish as the No. 7 seed taking on No. 10 LSU. While Notre Dame is eligible to get a first-round bye, they don't think that will be the case this year.
It could be a blessing in disguise, as all four teams that sat out the first-round of the CFP lost its second-round game last year. Schlabach doesn't have Notre Dame moving past the initial game, while Bonagura does. He has them matching up against No. 3 Ohio State, only to fall to the Buckeyes once again.
As for the eventual championship game, they both have their No. 1 and No. 2 ranked teams facing off, but with different matchups. Bonagura has No. 2 Penn State facing No. 1 Texas, while Schlabach has No. 2 Clemson also taking on the Longhorns.
After what we saw last year, it's hard to say that the top-two teams will eventually play for a championship, as neither the Irish or the Buckeyes were one of the top seeds. This isn't how I see it playing out, as I think that the Irish will get a top-4 seed, and an easier path in the CFP. How do you see it playing out?
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