What’s most important when trying to create a makeup schedule for a season that is 1) no lock to happen and 2) will have limited or zero fans in the stands?
Is it creating the most compelling games between big-name teams that will generate the highest TV ratings, or finding the games that are most likely to be top-25 or top-10 meetings and therein schedule quality boosters?
Both options have validity. Excitement for this season is harder to generate, especially when trying to create interest in a matchup beyond two teams’ fan bases. At the same time, the Fighting Irish and many other schools lost some of the strongest opponents on their schedule. If there’s a legitimate season, there will be a College Football Playoff, and a team’s résumé will matter in selection. Nationally compelling TV and résumé wins don’t always equate.
For the sake of the question, let’s assume everyone goes to a conference-only model and the ACC includes Notre Dame. The Irish will likely need three or four games in addition to the six ACC ones already scheduled. But in picking the one must-have game not already scheduled, is ratings magnet Miami versus Notre Dame the clear choice? BlueandGold.com’s Patrick Engel and Lou Somogyi make the case for and against it.
BUY: By Patrick Engel
Miami is the made-for-national-television matchup. The schools have history and distaste for the other. Their meetings once had a moniker. They’re two notable college football brands. Miami is open to playing this year. Notre Dame can exact revenge for a 2017 blowout.
The only more compelling game nationally the ACC can create this year is Clemson versus Notre Dame, and that’s already done. It’s a marquee win chance. There’s room to prioritize a game that seems likely to bring more ratings value than résumé value.
The last time Notre Dame and Miami played, the game was placed in primetime. Yes, it was a meeting of top-10 teams with real playoff paths and one combined loss. A repeat feels unlikely given Miami went 6-7 last year and is in a two-season search for a sentient offense. But this is an evergreen game, to a degree.
