Would it be better for Notre Dame to make CFP and lose or win a NY6 game?
Sitting at No. 9 in the most recent College Football Playoff Rankings, Notre Dame (8-1) is a fringe contender to make the playoff for the third time in the last four seasons.
Both times the Fighting Irish have made the playoff, they've lost by multiple scores to the eventual national champion. Notre Dame lost to Clemson 30-3 in the 2018-19 CFP semifinal and lost to Alabama 31-14 in last year's semifinal.
If Notre Dame has any shot of sneaking into this year's playoff, it would likely be no better than the No. 4 seed. If Georgia wins out and retains its No. 1 seed, is that a matchup Irish fans would want to see? Or would they rather miss out on the playoff and win a New Year's Six bowl game?
Of course, Notre Dame likely has to win out to be in the running for either of those options. Saturday's game against Virginia (6-3) is the only point of concern as it stands. But for the sake of the argument, BlueandGold.com’s Tyler Horka and Todd Burlage offered their opinions in the debate.
Tyler Horka: Top Four Means More
Bowl season is a joyous time for all involved. It doesn’t matter if you root for a 6-6 team participating in the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl Presented by Stiffel (yes, that’s a real name) on Dec. 18 or a double-digit win team playing in the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Day. It’s the holiday season, and your team is playing postseason football. That’s enough to bring a smile to anyone’s face.
But the College Football Playoff? That’s a different story. Only four fan bases per year can boast that their program is a part of it. A 20-point loss in the CFP means more than a win of any margin in a New Year’s Six bowl — or any other bowl, for that matter.
The goal for Notre Dame every year is to win a national championship. The Fighting Irish can’t do that without reaching the playoff. Losing to Clemson in the CFP in 2018 and to Alabama last year showed more progress toward achieving that goal than winning the Citrus Bowl in 2017 and the Camping World Bowl in 2019. Obviously, those aren’t New Year’s Six bowls. Punching a ticket to the Fiesta Bowl or Peach Bowl would be a bit better of a feat. But it still wouldn’t match making the CFP.
Going to the playoff for the third time in the past four years and losing to the likes of Georgia or Alabama or Ohio State would be better for this program than beating Wake Forest or Michigan in an exhibition game. Period.
Todd Burlage: Give Me The Win
With two College Football Playoff appearances in the last three seasons, Notre Dame fans have expectedly become a bit spoiled and raised program expectations to where anything short of making the national semifinals is a disappointment.
But one thing we learned in those two losses — a 30-3 drubbing to Clemson in 2018 and a 31-14 defeat to Alabama last season — it’s that the playoffs aren’t necessarily all they’re cracked up to be, and maybe there’s a better fate for this young Irish team this season.
Instead of sweating out a CFP berth for a chance to likely play either Alabama or Georgia as a prohibitive underdog, Notre Dame should instead hope to play and beat a more manageable opponent such as Michigan, Michigan State or Oklahoma in a New Year’s Six Bowl, in part, to boost confidence for 2022 when it opens the season at Ohio State.
Shockingly, it’s been 28 years with nine straight losses since Notre Dame beat Texas A&M in the 1994 Cotton Bowl and claimed its last win in a premier bowl game. Irish head coach Brian Kelly has lost in each of his four tries.
Playoff appearances are obviously prestigious and the common goal all elite programs share to start each season.
But for this particular Notre Dame team, finally beating an elite opponent in a premier New Year’s Six bowl game would bring a more rewarding end to this season and a better vibe heading into 2022 than suffering another forgettable fate as a token playoff participant.
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