Notre Dame Football: Ranking the Hardest Games of the 2015 Schedule
Notre Dame football begins spring practice in seven short days, and the Irish kick off the 2015 regular season in less than six months.
So with football around the corner, let’s turn our attention to the upcoming season and analyze Notre Dame’s 2015 schedule. We’ll rank the hardest games for the Irish, considering timing and venue—everything that goes into the game—not just the opponent.
At first glance, Notre Dame’s 2015 slate of games may not be as challenging as its 2014 schedule on paper. When we power ranked the 2014 opponents last summer, there were seven teams drawing top-25 consideration (Louisville, North Carolina, Arizona State, Michigan, Stanford, USC and Florida State).
This year? There are only five teams—Georgia Tech, Clemson, Navy, USC and Stanford—on the 2015 docket that won at least eight games in 2014. The combined 2014 record of Notre Dame’s 2015 opponents was 82-71 (.536).
But of course, it’s way too early to jump to any conclusions. Last year, we pegged Northwestern as Notre Dame’s third-easiest game and Michigan as its second-hardest game. Welp.
Let’s dive into the 2015 edition, ranking the opponents based on their 2014 success, their additions and losses and the scheduling logistics.
12. Massachusetts
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Notre Dame is often quick to point out it doesn’t schedule cupcakes. The Irish are one of just three teams (along with USC and UCLA) to have never faced a non-FBS opponent since 1978, when the current structure originated.
Massachusetts, Notre Dame’s Week 4 opponent, might be the closest such thing for the Irish. The Minutemen have only played at the FBS level since 2012 after transitioning from the FCS.
UMass improved in 2014, its third FBS season, finishing 3-9 after a pair of 1-11 campaigns to kick off the new era. The Minutemen notched MAC victories over Kent State, Eastern Michigan and Ball State.
Still, the Sept. 26 meeting between Notre Dame and UMass in South Bend should be a formality. Expect the Irish to roll easily.
11. Wake Forest
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Notre Dame’s final true home game is a Nov. 14 clash with Wake Forest. Between the Senior Day emotions and the Demon Deacons’ quality (3-9 in 2014), the Irish shouldn’t have much trouble.
Wake Forest lost seven of its last eight games in 2014, the lone win a 6-3 double-overtime stinker against Virginia Tech in November at home. The Demon Deacons, who only amassed 300 yards of total offense in three games in 2014, will return John Wolford at quarterback. As a freshman, Wolford threw for 2,037 yards and 12 touchdowns.
No matter how much the Demon Deacons develop in head coach Dave Clawson’s second season, the Irish should take care of business. Notre Dame’s last matchup with Wake Forest was a Senior Day battle in 2012.
Notre Dame steamrolled the Demon Deacons, 38-0.
10. Virginia
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Things get tight among these next four or five teams, with not much differentiation, on paper, among teams that finished around .500 last season.
But Notre Dame travels to Virginia in the second week of the regular season to battle the Cavaliers, who checked in at 5-7 last year. Mike London returns as the Cavaliers head coach after receiving a public vote of confidence from athletic director Craig Littlepage in late November.
Virginia lost five of its last six games in 2014, although the losses were to strong opponents such as Duke, North Carolina, Georgia Tech and Florida State. The Cavaliers did nab a late-season win over Miami, 30-13, in Charlottesville.
Stud sophomore safety Quin Blanding is an elite talent. The freshman All-American tallied 123 tackles as a true freshman, second-most in the ACC and 12th nationally. He could be busy at the back of Virginia’s defense against the Irish offense.
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9. Temple
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It’s been two seasons since the Irish opened up the 2013 campaign with a 28-6 win over Temple and then-new head coach Matt Rhule.
And even though Notre Dame will make the return trip this season at the end of October and square off with the Owls at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, the change of venue doesn’t change much.
The Irish will be fresh off a bye week and will have had plenty of time to prepare for Temple. The Owls boasted some bright spots in a 6-6 season in 2014. They annihilated Vanderbilt in Nashville, 37-7, to start the season and earned a strong conference win over then-ranked East Carolina in November.
Even with quarterback P.J. Walker and linebacker Tyler Matakevich back in the fold, it's unlikely Temple will have enough firepower to topple the Irish.
8. Boston College
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If we were ranking Notre Dame’s 2015 matchups solely based on the excitement level around the games, the Boston College contest at Fenway Park in November would rank near the top.
But we’re only judging the on-the-field football matchups here, and Boston College doesn’t appear to be a major threat. Eagles head coach Steve Addazio built a strong squad in 2014, but quarterback Tyler Murphy is gone. Murphy piled up 1,184 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns while throwing for 1,623 yards and 13 scores.
So who replaces the dual-threat quarterback? Sophomores Darius Wade and Troy Flutie return, and freshman Elijah Robinson rounds out the quarterbacks on the spring roster. As ESPN’s Andrea Adelson writes, Addazio is hoping to develop the passing game more while still understanding the team will always have a heavy run influence.
7. Navy
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If there was any extra convincing that needed to be done, Navy has certainly earned the on-field respect of Notre Dame and most Irish fans.
The Midshipmen simply always seem to pose a difficult challenge for the Irish, as evidenced most recently by Notre Dame’s 49-39 win at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland, in early November.
This year, Notre Dame is scheduled to face Navy between two of its most difficult opponents, on paper. The Irish travel to Clemson in the first week of October before hosting Navy and USC in successive weeks.
After losing to the Irish in 2014, Navy reeled off four consecutive wins to finish the season 8-5. Star quarterback Keenan Reynolds will be back under center to run head coach Ken Niumatalolo’s triple-option attack. Reynolds’ 64 career rushing touchdowns are the most by a quarterback in NCAA history and the third-most in program history.
6. Pittsburgh
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If we’re just judging the opposing teams themselves, there might be a case for Navy as a more difficult opponent than Pittsburgh.
But the Irish run into the Panthers on the road at a time seemingly ripe for a trap game. And remember: Notre Dame’s last trip to Pittsburgh was during the 2013 season, when the Irish still theoretically had a chance for a BCS bowl berth. The result? A 28-21 loss in early November.
Notre Dame is at Pittsburgh the first Saturday in November this year, too. The Panthers boast elite playmakers in running back James Conner and wide receiver Tyler Boyd. The ACC’s head coaches tabbed Conner as the ACC Player of the Year, and Boyd is the first player in league history to rack up 1,000 receiving yards in each of his freshman and sophomore seasons.
If new head coach Pat Narduzzi can bring some of his defensive success at Michigan State with him, the Panthers should be a tough out.
5. Texas
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It’s only a matter of time until Texas reclaims its spot among the nation’s elite, right?
We’ll see how quickly second-year head coach Charlie Strong brings the Longhorns along. In the season opener at Notre Dame Stadium, the Irish face Texas, which won three of its final four regular-season games before losing 31-7 to Arkansas in the Texas Bowl.
Strong signed the nation’s 10th-ranked recruiting class, according to 247Sports. As ESPN’s Mark Schlabach breaks down in his post-signing day Top 25, Strong still needs to build up the Longhorn offense. Our Brian Pedersen analyzes Texas’ quarterback battle, which features redshirt freshman Jerrod Heard, junior Tyrone Swoopes and true freshman Kai Locksley.
Texas is stocked with talent, but the Irish should be well equipped and raring to go in Week 1.
4. Stanford
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This year’s Stanford-Notre Dame matchup comes in the final week of the regular season in Palo Alto, California. None of the last three meetings has been decided by more than seven points.
Quarterback Kevin Hogan elected to return for his senior season, and the experienced signal-caller will look to lead the Cardinal to a stronger campaign than the 8-5 season in 2014. Stanford head coach David Shaw praised Hogan’s work during a recent spring scrimmage.
3. Georgia Tech
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In recent years Stanford has probably been a stronger opponent than Georgia Tech. Moreover, the Irish host the Yellow Jackets while they travel to Stanford.
But Notre Dame has struggled against option offenses under head coach Brian Kelly, and Paul Johnson’s Georgia Tech squad will bring a vaunted attack into South Bend.
Behind the nation’s No. 2 rushing offense, per CFBStats.com, the Yellow Jackets won 11 games, including a 49-34 victory over Mississippi State in the Orange Bowl and regular-season wins over Clemson and Georgia.
Quarterback Justin Thomas is back to lead the offense a year after totaling 1,086 rushing yards and eight scores on the ground in 2014.
The Irish will welcome the Yellow Jackets to South Bend in Week 3 and must have an answer for Thomas and company.
2. Clemson
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Notre Dame’s marquee road matchup—opponent and venue included—is likely its Week 5 trip to Clemson. Our Ben Kercheval slotted the Tigers 10th in his early Top 25 rankings.
Fresh off a 10-win season and a 40-6 demolition of Oklahoma in the Russell Athletic Bowl, Clemson hopes for a healthy Deshaun Watson.
As a true freshman in 2014, Watson shined against Florida State and followed it up with a record-setting performance against North Carolina the next week in his first career start. Watson is working out on the side of Clemson’s spring practices as he returns from a torn ACL, according to the football program.
“The knee is getting better every day,” Watson said earlier this month, per Clemson's website. “I have to be patient. There is a process I have to go through. Right now I am working to help with the leadership of this football team.”
1. USC
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Strictly speaking of the two opponents on paper, USC and Clemson appear to be closely matched. While the Irish travel to Clemson to face the Tigers, they host USC in South Bend in mid-October.
But the Irish face USC following their matchup with Navy, and there’s been talk recently of a post-option hangover for the Irish and their defense. If the Irish do lag after facing the Midshipmen, USC is not the opponent they'll want to run into next.
Nelson Agholor, George Farmer and Javorius "Buck" Allen all departed USC’s offense for the next level, and as expected, standout defensive lineman Leonard Williams declared early too.
Still, 16 starters are back, including quarterback Cody Kessler, who completed 69.7 percent of his passes in 2014 and tossed 39 touchdowns to just five interceptions. Defensive stalwart Su’a Cravens, Adoree’ Jackson and JuJu Smith are among the other elite returnees.
Both teams will have about a month and a half to hit their groove before the annual rivalry game. Mark the calendars.
All quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.
Mike Monaco is a lead Notre Dame writer for Bleacher Report. Follow @MikeMonaco_ on Twitter.
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