According to ESPN, Notre Dame has two flaws that could hurt it against playoff-level competition. One is that the team has faced third-and-more-than-seven yards on half of its third-down plays -- that's 86th in the nation. The other is that the defense is 87th in the country in terms of third-and-long conversions allowed.

Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire is standing on business when it comes to the Big 12 in the College Football Playoff picture and said one-loss BYU is worthy of merit in the discussion following Saturday's 29-7 win over the Cougars. Without mentioning Notre Dame by name, he skewered the Fighting Irish and their road to the postseason as an Independent.

The College Football Playoff conversation surrounding Notre Dame took a sharp turn, with analysts splitting on whether the Fighting Irish deserve their current standing.

Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire criticized Notre Dame for not being part of a conference during the CFP race.

Entering Tuesday night's initial CFP reveal, Irish nation was full of hope and anxiety, waiting to see where Notre Dame would land in the first official bracket. Sure, Notre Dame has gone on a six-game winning streak,

Make that seven straight wins in 2025-26 after No. 10 Notre Dame football dispatched Navy with relative ease for a second straight season

Joey McGuire didn’t name Notre Dame, but he didn’t have to. When he praised BYU for joining a conference instead of sticking to an independent schedule like “some people do,” it was clear who the target was.