There were plenty of reasons to write off Notre Dame as a College Football Playoff contender after the Irish lost Oct. 2 to Cincinnati, 24-13, in South Bend.
The Irish were 4-1, but even those four victories looked either shaky or closer than anticipated. The defense wasn’t settled. The offense was hit or miss. There was even a debate about who should play quarterback.
Maybe most important, Notre Dame’s usually impressive schedule lacked any opponents who could provide a signature victory. USC and Stanford were a mess.