Notre Dame Football: Remaining Irish Schedule Will Rescue BCS Bowl Hopes

0-2 is not the way the Notre Dame Fighting Irish envisioned opening their season. Coach Brian Kelly, the Irish faithful and the nation at large have reasonable concerns about how good this football team actually is. Their losses, though—like majority of the losses in Kelly's reign—have been nail-biting heart breakers that could just have easily gone the other way.

But that is football, and that is why we love it.

That being said, the Irish season is far from over despite their 0-2 record. For starters, they have the opportunity to knock off an untested Michigan State team this week. The No. 15 Spartans have looked good, not great, in their first two wins. Traveling to South Bend is not the same as beating up on the Youngstown State Penguins, though. Should the Irish pull the upset, they have a legitimate chance at salvaging their season.

They will travel to Pittsburgh and Purdue in the weeks following the Michigan State battle and should win both games. 

They then return home to take on Air Force, USC and Navy. The USC and Navy games are the most intriguing. The Trojans have not looked good at all this year, despite their 2-0 record. Eventually, their questionable play will catch up to them when they step up in class, and the Irish have to take advantage of that opportunity.

As for Navy, the Midshipmen upended the Irish last year in what was one of their uglier games in recent years. If nothing else, the Irish will be out for revenge.

Wake Forest, Maryland and Boston College shouldn't be a problem—although anything can happen—before the season-ending battle with Andrew Luck and Stanford. If, and it is a big if, but if the Irish can run the table up to the Stanford game, there is more than a good chance of them appearing in a BCS bowl. Should they cap it off with a win over Stanford, they'll be in without question. If they lose but keep it close, it will go a long way as well.

It all starts this Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium, though.

The season isn't lost. Not yet.