ESPN College GameDay 2025 TV Schedule, Predictions and Location for Week 12

The 2025 season started tumultuously for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who went 0-2 to kick things off and gave themselves zero room for error the rest of the season. A win Saturday at home, though, would go a long way in establishing them as a potential College Football Playoff team.

To accomplish that, they must overcome a Pitt team, on the road, that ranks in the top 25, can still compete for an ACC title, and is eyeing its own potential playoff push.

The showdown between the Irish and Panthers is the centerpiece of Week 12's ESPN College Gameday coverage.

ESPN College Gameday Viewing Info

Date: Saturday, November 16

Time: 9:00 a.m. EST

TV: ESPN, ESPN U

Streaming: ESPN app

Location: University of Pittsburgh

Crew: Rece Davis, Desmond Howard, Kirk Herbstreit, Nick Saban, Pat McAfee, Jess Sims, Jenn Lada, Pete Thamel, "Stanford" Steve Coughlin

Guest Picker: Aaron Donald

Notre Dame at Pitt Preview

Saturday's game is the first of three consecutive matchups against ACC opponents for the Irish, and head coach Marcus Freeman has been outstanding against the conference, accumulating a 14-2 record.

Add to that the outstanding play of freshman quarterback CJ Carr, who is second among first-year signal callers with 19 touchdowns and has played relatively mistake-free football in the team's seven straight victories, and you have a team rolling at the right time and facing a very winnable schedule the rest of the way.

The run game is nearly unstoppable, and if the Panthers do manage to bottle up potential Top 10 draft pick Jeremiyah Love, the Irish will just let Carr sling the ball all over the field.

That is, if he has time.

Pitt features one of the elite pass rushes in the country, one that has a knack for forcing turnovers and keeping offenses unsteady throughout games.

Offensively, the Panthers have a quarterback of their own who has been fantastic in Mason Heintschel, who has thrown for over 1,500 yards, 12 touchdowns, and five interceptions.

The Panthers have managed over 300 yards passing or more in four of their last five games and the Irish have given up their fair share of yardage through the air this season, potentially presenting an area the home team offense can exploit to their advantage.

Add in the energy in Acrisure Stadium as the Panthers honor former Pittsburgh great and Super Bowl champion with the Los Angeles Rams, Aaron Donald, and it will be a raucous environment Saturday afternoon.

Still, all of the hoopla and excitement in the world will not be enough for Pittsburgh to knock off a Notre Dame squad that is sniffing a return to the playoffs just one year after appearing in the national title game.

The Irish will win Saturday, potentially big, and set the stage to finish out the season victorious against beatable teams in Syracuse and Stanford.

Prediction: Notre Dame wins by 10