Favorable schedule could be Notre Dame's ticket back to BCS

[Hawkeye]

Stir the echoes. Grab a clover. Prod über-fan Regis Philbin. Notre Dame (dramatic drum roll, please) could well play in a BCS bowl this season.

Yes, Notre Dame, the same team that won 10 games the past two seasons, that marched to an abysmal 3-9 record in 2007 (that campaign, the worst in Notre Dame's 120-plus-year history, was so forgettable the school omitted it from its media guide), that lost to lowly Syracuse at home in 2008.

Charlie Weis, Notre Dame could reach BCS with favorable schedule - Cory McCartney - SI.com (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/cory_mccartney/06/19/notre-dame/index.html?eref=si_ncaaf)

I don't think they should go to a BCS bowl with that pitiful schedule. They should be made an honorary Big 10/Pac 10 member though judging by their schedule every year that includes 6 or 7 Big 10/Pac 10 games on average.

[Texecutioner]

Charlie Weis, Notre Dame could reach BCS with favorable schedule - Cory McCartney - SI.com (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/cory_mccartney/06/19/notre-dame/index.html?eref=si_ncaaf)

I don't think they should go to a BCS bowl with that pitiful schedule. They should be made an honorary Big 10/Pac 10 member though judging by their schedule every year that includes 6 or 7 Big 10/Pac 10 games on average.

You know that if ND has any type of favorable season, the media, the BcS, and whatever higher powers will slide ND in if they can.

This is the type of reasons why I hate ND. I'm so sick and tired of hearing about ND returning back to prominence. I'm so sick and tired of hearing about the media go on and on about how ND can get back to what they once were `15 to 20 years ago. I never hated ND growing up, but I freaking hate this team so bad now. They constantly play all of their games out here every Saturday during the college season over other great games that I would love to watch. You can't find hardly any ND fans out here, so I'm not sure who the hell watches their games any way. I wish this fascination with making ND a supreme power again would just die. It's so annoying to the rest of the country who doesn't give a rat's ass about ND.

[Weston M]

I don't think they should go to a BCS bowl with that pitiful schedule. They should be made an honorary Big 10/Pac 10 member though judging by their schedule every year that includes 6 or 7 Big 10/Pac 10 games on average.

So, we can give Ohio State and USC a pass when they play a pitiful schedule (minus the past two years since they play each other) but not Notre Dame? You're saying they should be made members of the Pac-10 or Big Ten. Does having a pitiful schedule and making it to a BCS bowl only become justified if you're in a conference?

weston

[Hawkeye]

So, we can give Ohio State and USC a pass when they play a pitiful schedule (minus the past two years since they play each other) but not Notre Dame? You're saying they should be made members of the Pac-10 or Big Ten. Does having a pitiful schedule and making it to a BCS bowl only become justified if you're in a conference?

weston


Who gave OSU or USC a pass when they played a bad schedule Weston? The difference between them and ND is that USC HAS to play Washington, WSU and Stanford. OSU HAS to play Michigan and in most years MSU and Purdue.....and the years when they don't, it the league that decides that and not OSU. IF ND was in a conference, the chances are VERY GOOD they would have to play the best teams in the conference and then prove whether they deserved to go to a bowl or not.

Furthermore, they have a special deal with the BCS. Do you think that is fair? If they finish in the top 8 of the BCS, they get an AUTOMATIC bid. If they finish in the top 14, they get an at-large bid. Would you like to see ND get in as an at-large over a more deserving SEC team because they are ND?

[Texecutioner]

Furthermore, they have a special deal with the BCS. Do you think that is fair? If they finish in the top 8 of the BCS, they get an AUTOMATIC bid. If they finish in the top 14, they get an at-large bid. Would you like to see ND get in as an at-large over a more deserving SEC team because they are ND?

I never knew all of this, although it doesn't surprise me. It just highlights my disgust for the BcS and the NCAA more and more though. Oh and yeah, it heats up my hatred for ND even more as well since they get these unfair advantages that they shouldn't be getting in the first place.

[Dreamers]

I'm not seeing how that is a poor schedule they play a lot of good teams. College teams loose guys every year if you think that makes Michigan State, BC, USC, Navy, Pittsburgh, Nevada, and Connecticut all easy games I'm sorry your just wrong. Michigan State will have a great team Cousins maybe an upgrade from Hoyer, they have a few good RB prospects and Martin Keshawn will be a play maker this year. Pittsburgh is a very tough game and I'm not sleeping on Navy I do not care how many offensive players they lost that is not an offensive team. It may help them to be honest Dobbs is already an upgrade for that Navy O. USC duh. BC loosing Dominique Davis is major? No mention they just signed one of the top QB recruits this year. I think every one is kinda jumping the gun here. If ND by some miracle pulls off a winning season with those games I think they would have earned it. This is not the 07 Hawaii schedule we are talking here these are teams that have winning ways.

[OSU8085]

Its not the weakest schedule, but its weaker than most and certainly weaker than any bcs team ranked in the top 8.

Most of those teams you mentioned dreamers have lost significant pieces to their teams and would be a cake walk for most of the top 15 teams.

[Hawkeye]

I'm not seeing how that is a poor schedule they play a lot of good teams. College teams loose guys every year if you think that makes Michigan State, BC, USC, Navy, Pittsburgh, Nevada, and Connecticut all easy games I'm sorry your just wrong. Michigan State will have a great team Cousins maybe an upgrade from Hoyer, they have a few good RB prospects and Martin Keshawn will be a play maker this year. Pittsburgh is a very tough game and I'm not sleeping on Navy I do not care how many offensive players they lost that is not an offensive team. It may help them to be honest Dobbs is already an upgrade for that Navy O. USC duh. BC loosing Dominique Davis is major? No mention they just signed one of the top QB recruits this year. I think every one is kinda jumping the gun here. If ND by some miracle pulls off a winning season with those games I think they would have earned it. This is not the 07 Hawaii schedule we are talking here these are teams that have winning ways.

Ok, seriously? Their schedule should be a cakewalk. Purdue, Washington, WSU, Navy, Stanford and UConn should be easy wins. Michigan will be green at QB and they get them early. BC starting a freshman at QB and losing their MLB for the year is kind of major......oh and they have a new coach too.

Pitt? They lost McCoy along with their departed MLB AND his replacement. Their QBs suck. As impressive as they should be, they barely beat WVU even after the Mountaineers tried to give that game away several times. They scored 0 points vs a rebuilding Oregon State defense.....and their offense won't be as experienced as last year.

Of course USC is a loss.....why would you think I thought otherwise?

MSU will be their only other really tough game and that is strictly because of their defense. The jury is still out on Cousins and they have no experience at RB because they chose to give Ringer a jillion carries a game. Even so, they have to play at ND. Hell, ND plays four road games all year.

[Dreamers]

Ok, seriously? Their schedule should be a cakewalk. Purdue, Washington, WSU, Navy, Stanford and UConn should be easy wins. Michigan will be green at QB and they get them early. BC starting a freshman at QB and losing their MLB for the year is kind of major......oh and they have a new coach too.

Pitt? They lost McCoy along with their departed MLB AND his replacement. Their QBs suck. As impressive as they should be, they barely beat WVU even after the Mountaineers tried to give that game away several times. They scored 0 points vs a rebuilding Oregon State defense.....and their offense won't be as experienced as last year.

Of course USC is a loss.....why would you think I thought otherwise?

MSU will be their only other really tough game and that is strictly because of their defense. The jury is still out on Cousins and they have no experience at RB because they chose to give Ringer a jillion carries a game. Even so, they have to play at ND. Hell, ND plays four road games all year.

You are just a little too high on McCoy he was not the only player on a good Pitt team. If you take out that WV game Stull did not play bad at all. He looked good vs Cinci and almost won it for them but Pike just had a great game. He was not the issue when they played Rutgers either. Thought he looked very good in that game but I do not see a lot of Pitt games so I could be missing something. And as for Michigan being green, please it is college football they are all green a good team is a good team reguardless of how many SRs are on it. If a team replaces it's starter with a good recruit then there shouldn't be a huge drop off. Is USC done because they lost like 12 starter this year including there QB. No, of course not they loose like 12 players every year but spend more money recruiting then any anyone else. Same thing goes for BC. Is loosing Chris Crane that big of a deal they got a top 5 recruit in Joe Boisture. I think that alone makes them a better team not worse. Cane was not a good QB at all. It is not that Fr QB can't get it done it is more that very few get notice. Many starting FR QB turn out to be the best. I think Dan LeFevour, Colt McCoy, and Sam Bradford all had great FR years. Very few good QBs start there FR year and never look good, cough Jimmy Clausen. BC a new coach OK really! This is not a blind hand-off Frank Spaziani has been in BC for what a decade or so. It is not like Jagodzinski?, that guy, is Carol there is really not a huge diff. there. Either way I did not think Jimmy Clausen or ND is good enough to win 8 games this year with that schedule. ND should not be a top 25 ranked team and I am a ND fan. Clausen just is no Brady. For this team this is a tough schedule IMO.

[Hawkeye]

You are just a little too high on McCoy he was not the only player on a good Pitt team. If you take out that WV game Stull did not play bad at all. He looked good vs Cinci and almost won it for them but Pike just had a great game. He was not the issue when they played Rutgers either. Thought he looked very good in that game but I do not see a lot of Pitt games so I could be missing something. And as for Michigan being green, please it is college football they are all green a good team is a good team reguardless of how many SRs are on it. If a team replaces it's starter with a good recruit then there shouldn't be a huge drop off. Is USC done because they lost like 12 starter this year including there QB. No, of course not they loose like 12 players every year but spend more money recruiting then any anyone else. Same thing goes for BC. Is loosing Chris Crane that big of a deal they got a top 5 recruit in Joe Boisture. I think that alone makes them a better team not worse. Cane was not a good QB at all. It is not that Fr QB can't get it done it is more that very few get notice. Many starting FR QB turn out to be the best. I think Dan LeFevour, Colt McCoy, and Sam Bradford all had great FR years. Very few good QBs start there FR year and never look good, cough Jimmy Clausen. BC a new coach OK really! This is not a blind hand-off Frank Spaziani has been in BC for what a decade or so. It is not like Jagodzinski?, that guy, is Carol there is really not a huge diff. there. Either way I did not think Jimmy Clausen or ND is good enough to win 8 games this year with that schedule. ND should not be a top 25 ranked team and I am a ND fan. Clausen just is no Brady. For this team this is a tough schedule IMO.

No……McCoy was the only good player on a bad Pitt offense. Stull is terrible. Taking out the WVU game does not make him look better. Stull is terrible and not in the same realm with the word good. I’m sorry, but when you have Kinder, Baldwin and Turner at WR and you can’t get things done, you’re bad. I saw him in a few games last year and he is not good.

When did I say Michigan had a green team? I said they would be green at QB and they will be. The team as a whole was awful last year and while they will be improved I am sure, it remains to be seen how much.

USC has proven they can reload…..not so much with the other teams mentioned here. Corp also isn’t a true freshman, so it’s not like USC is in the same boat as Michigan and BC.

I find it funny that you say Crane was not good at all when he put up similar stats to Stull. The fact is that losing Crane wasn’t a big deal….losing Davis was. Davis looked like he had potential. What does getting a verbal from Boisture do for them in 2009??? Nothing. He can’t help them this season and that’s what we’re talking about. It is kind of a blind hand-off. They will have a new OC and they don’t know what kind of a HC Spaz will be as he has never been one before. I find it interesting though that O’Brien didn’t take Spaziani with him when he went to NC St. Spaziani was then passed over for the HC job which went to Jagodzinski. The criticism that BC settled for Spaz because he met the criteria of saying he would never leave is a valid one. I think it’s safe to say he’s a question mark at this point.

I don’t know why you are so high on freshman QBs, as many more do not do well right away. I also don’t care about the hype around 4 and 5 star players either. Many more of them don’t pan out….so it’s fine to get excited when your team gets one, but that doesn’t mean anything yet.

I like how you mention LeFevour, McCoy and Bradford as having great freshman years. Of course they did, they also had excellent supporting casts. Very few good QBs start their freshman year and never look good? Does that mean they don’t look good during their whole career because I can assure you that a lot of good QBs struggle during their freshman years.

[Texecutioner]

You are just a little too high on McCoy he was not the only player on a good Pitt team. If you take out that WV game Stull did not play bad at all. He looked good vs Cinci and almost won it for them but Pike just had a great game. He was not the issue when they played Rutgers either. Thought he looked very good in that game but I do not see a lot of Pitt games so I could be missing something. And as for Michigan being green, please it is college football they are all green a good team is a good team reguardless of how many SRs are on it. If a team replaces it's starter with a good recruit then there shouldn't be a huge drop off. Is USC done because they lost like 12 starter this year including there QB. No, of course not they loose like 12 players every year but spend more money recruiting then any anyone else. Same thing goes for BC. Is loosing Chris Crane that big of a deal they got a top 5 recruit in Joe Boisture. I think that alone makes them a better team not worse. Cane was not a good QB at all. It is not that Fr QB can't get it done it is more that very few get notice. Many starting FR QB turn out to be the best. I think Dan LeFevour, Colt McCoy, and Sam Bradford all had great FR years. Very few good QBs start there FR year and never look good, cough Jimmy Clausen. BC a new coach OK really! This is not a blind hand-off Frank Spaziani has been in BC for what a decade or so. It is not like Jagodzinski?, that guy, is Carol there is really not a huge diff. there. Either way I did not think Jimmy Clausen or ND is good enough to win 8 games this year with that schedule. ND should not be a top 25 ranked team and I am a ND fan. Clausen just is no Brady. For this team this is a tough schedule IMO.

Dreamers their schedule is not tough at all. They won't belong anywhere near a BcS game even if they go undefeated. This is just some typical ploy to try and make ND relevant again, like they do every year and continue to fail at it. I now hate ND more than any other school in the country.

[Hawkeye]

I now hate ND more than any other school in the country.

What took ya so long? :D

[Sascha]

You know that if ND has any type of favorable season, the media, the BcS, and whatever higher powers will slide ND in if they can.

This is the type of reasons why I hate ND. I'm so sick and tired of hearing about ND returning back to prominence. I'm so sick and tired of hearing about the media go on and on about how ND can get back to what they once were `15 to 20 years ago. I never hated ND growing up, but I freaking hate this team so bad now. They constantly play all of their games out here every Saturday during the college season over other great games that I would love to watch. You can't find hardly any ND fans out here, so I'm not sure who the hell watches their games any way. I wish this fascination with making ND a supreme power again would just die. It's so annoying to the rest of the country who doesn't give a rat's ass about ND.


Hate ND all you want, I certainly do. But don't hate them for this. It is not ND's fault that the national medial and poll voters buy into them all the time. Blame them.

[Texecutioner]

What took ya so long? :D

Sorry man, takes me a while sometimes to get things right.

[Texecutioner]

Hate ND all you want, I certainly do. But don't hate them for this. It is not ND's fault that the national medial and poll voters buy into them all the time. Blame them.

That's actually just part of it. Like Hawkeye mentioned before, ND has some sort of deal with the BcS that no other college has where they get all of this extra money as well. It's down right criminal actually. Hawkeye mentioned something about it earlier but didn't go into detail, but I recently read an article that mentioned a lot of other stuff that was to it. It's completely unethical of the NCAA and the BcS to even have anything like this, but since all they know is "corruption" then that's actually a fact. I'll try and find this article. You probably aren't aware of this. I know that I wasn't and the majority of fans aren't either.

[Sascha]

Oh no, I was very aware of ND's pact with the BCS. I'm not entirely sure if that doesn't extend to all Independents though, but of course ND is probably the only who will ever have the opportunity to be ranked that high.

Like I said, I hate Notre Dame too, but as far as most of their perks go, I blame the BCS for creating a deal that favors the Irish too much, I blame NBC for continually wasting their money with an exclusive TV deal, and I blame the media for continually overtrumping anything about ND.

[FSUViking]

Didn't they have a "favorable schedule" last year, too? How'd that work out for them?

[Dreamers]

Didn't they have a "favorable schedule" last year, too? How'd that work out for them?

It was about the same last year and not so well. This is just not the a good team.

[Hawkeye]

That's actually just part of it. Like Hawkeye mentioned before, ND has some sort of deal with the BcS that no other college has where they get all of this extra money as well. It's down right criminal actually. Hawkeye mentioned something about it earlier but didn't go into detail, but I recently read an article that mentioned a lot of other stuff that was to it. It's completely unethical of the NCAA and the BcS to even have anything like this, but since all they know is "corruption" then that's actually a fact. I'll try and find this article. You probably aren't aware of this. I know that I wasn't and the majority of fans aren't either.

Here ya go......


4. Notre Dame will have an automatic berth if it is in the top eight of the final BCS Standings.

CFB - - FOX Sports on MSN (http://www.bcsfootball.org/bcsfb/eligibility)

[Dreamers]

Just wanted to throw this thread back out there for everyone that thought ND had it easy this year. Not very many bad teams and 3 ranked in top 25 right now. I know I had a few things off but looking back at it this was a "favorable schedule". If they had gone undefeated this looks like schedule that would have earned consideration.

Nevada 7-3 2nd in the NCAA in total O ok 99th in D still a surprisingly good team
Michigan 5-6 Looks like a good team outside the Big Ten
Michigan State 6-5 Cousins was an upgrade from Hoyer but they still didn't look great.
Purdue 4-7 Did beat Ohio State did play better then last year.
Washington 3-7 Did beat USC
USC 7-3 Ranked 18 USC had a bad year OK they are still good
BC 7-3 2nd Atlantic Coast Loosing Cane was no big deal likely to finish better then last year
Washington State 1-9 I got nothing they stink
Navy 8-3 All 3 losses come from ranked or conference leading teams. Dobbs has a 148.5 QB rating to make this rookie team better then last years.
Pittsburgh 9-1 Ranked 9th Has looked just as good maybe better this year without McCoy
Connecticut 4-5 May have had one of the hardest schedules this year so 4-5 is really good for them.
Stanford 7-3 Ranked 17th

Myself


Either way I did not think Jimmy Clausen or ND is good enough to win 8 games this year with that schedule.
OK Clausen is good enough and they have a shot at 8 wins.

[OSU8085]

Yep many of those teams surprised (Pitt, Stanford etc.,) but ND still has blown games (mainly due to execution and coaching) against rival teams like Michigan and Navy, they've failed to defeat the big one- USC. Difficult or not this ND just doesn't not play up to its talent and is not an elite team - and from what I hear from ND fans, that is just unacceptable.

[Hawkeye]

Just wanted to throw this thread back out there for everyone that thought ND had it easy this year. Not very many bad teams and 3 ranked in top 25 right now. I know I had a few things off but looking back at it this was a "favorable schedule". If they had gone undefeated this looks like schedule that would have earned consideration.

Nevada 7-3 2nd in the NCAA in total O ok 99th in D still a surprisingly good team
Michigan 5-6 Looks like a good team outside the Big Ten
Michigan State 6-5 Cousins was an upgrade from Hoyer but they still didn't look great.
Purdue 4-7 Did beat Ohio State did play better then last year.
Washington 3-7 Did beat USC
USC 7-3 Ranked 18 USC had a bad year OK they are still good
BC 7-3 2nd Atlantic Coast Loosing Cane was no big deal likely to finish better then last year
Washington State 1-9 I got nothing they stink
Navy 8-3 All 3 losses come from ranked or conference leading teams. Dobbs has a 148.5 QB rating to make this rookie team better then last years.
Pittsburgh 9-1 Ranked 9th Has looked just as good maybe better this year without McCoy
Connecticut 4-5 May have had one of the hardest schedules this year so 4-5 is really good for them.
Stanford 7-3 Ranked 17th

Myself

OK Clausen is good enough and they have a shot at 8 wins.

I don't care how you want to rationalize it, ND has more talent than all but two of the teams on that schedule (Pitt and USC) and a "decided schematic advantage" over the NCAA. :D There is absolutely no reason why ND shouldn't have been 10-2 at the end of the season. A good coach would not lose to teams like Michigan and Navy. They wouldn't barely get by Washington and Purdue and MSU and BC. They would have crushed them all.