Paul Finebaum isn’t leaving much room for Notre Dame this week.
With Miami and the Fighting Irish set for a primetime showdown in South Bend on Saturday, the ESPN voice said the stakes are enormous for Marcus Freeman’s team as the College Football Playoff rankings loom. Finebaum made it plain on “First Take” Tuesday: Notre Dame needs to handle business against the No. 1 program in the country, or its playoff case could fall apart.
“If they don’t win, they have no business being in the CFP,” Finebaum said. “We heard all the crying in South Bend a year ago, they wouldn’t even go to a bowl game- they needed Stephen A. to come up there a couple of months ago to calm everybody down.”
He didn’t stop there.
“He warned them, he warned them you better not blow this,” Finebaum continued. “And they might blow it if they don’t win this game Saturday night.
There’s no wiggle room. They don’t have anything else on their resume that will get them in.”
The timing makes the matchup even heavier. Miami comes in off an Oct. 17 loss at No.
8 BYU, and it’s the final ranked opponent left on Notre Dame’s schedule. After that, the Irish close with Boston College, SMU and Syracuse.
That leaves Notre Dame with little margin for error. A two-loss Irish team, with its best win coming against 5-3 Wisconsin in Week 1, would have a tough case to make for a playoff spot.
In Other News...
Notre Dame's Miami Test Suddenly Centers On One Huge Uncertainty
Miamis buildup to Notre Dame has taken on a little extra uncertainty with Malachi Toney working through an ankle injury. The issue is not believed to be serious, and the expectation is that he will try to play, but his availability has become one of the most closely watched details heading into the matchup.
Toney has been a central part of Miamis offense all season, averaging 128.4 yards per game with 13 touchdowns in eight games. For Notre Dame, that makes his status worth tracking right up to kickoff, because even a limited version of him changes the way Miami can attack. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Suddenly Has A Massive Question Before Notre Dame
Miamis buildup to Notre Dame took an unexpected turn this week when Malachi Toney went down with an ankle injury in practice and remains under evaluation for the matchup. The receiver has been a key part of the Hurricanes offense, and his status now hangs over a game that was already drawing plenty of attention because of the stakes and the spotlight on Miamis attack.
The ripple effects have already shown up beyond the injury report, with Toneys Heisman Trophy odds slipping as other contenders moved up. More importantly for the game itself, Miami may have to adjust its offensive plan if he cannot go, and that would put even more pressure on quarterback Darian Mensah to carry the load against Notre Dame. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Just Got A CFP Reality Check Before Miami
The first College Football Playoff rankings have already given Notre Dame a sharper read on where it stands, and it is not quite the same picture the AP Top 25 has painted. The committees initial release showed a clear gap between perception and playoff positioning, with the SEC stacking the board and even some teams landing higher in the CFP pecking order than they do in the weekly poll. For the Irish, the message was straightforward: style points only go so far when the rsum is still missing the kind of signature win the committee tends to reward.
Hunter Yurachek said the challenge of ranking teams gets complicated in a season like this, and Notre Dame is feeling that reality heading into Miami. The Irish remain very much in the conversation, but the early playoff math suggests they have work to do if they want to climb, especially with the committee weighing more than record and reputation. For a team trying to build momentum in November, the rankings serve as both a warning and a reminder that the biggest tests still matter most. [Read more 🡒]