Each week in this space, we examine two things: Notre Dame’s strength of schedule (from USA Today‘s Sagarin rankings), and who Irish opponents are facing. For those of who want to scout future opponents, I’ll give you my recommendation for who to watch when you’re not watching Notre Dame Football.
Who To Watch
Michigan (3-1) vs Iowa (4-0), Sat 12:00PM ET on Fox
Well here’s a fun one: Michigan gets their requisite three points as the host in this game, but there’s an undefeated Iowa coming to town so this could be fun. The Hawkeye defense looks statistically pretty good this season, so we’ll see whether Shea Patterson and the lumbering Wolverine offense can make some headway. If not, then the Irish should have a pretty good blueprint (see what I did there?) for the upcoming trip to Ann Arbor.
Other Upcoming Opponents
- Boston College (3-2) at Louisville (2-2) (Sat 12:30PM ET, ACC Network)
- Virginia Tech (2-2) at Miami (Sat 3:30PM ET, ESPN)
- Navy (2-1) vs Air Force (Sat 3:30PM ET, CBS Sports Network)
- Duke (3-1) vs Pittsburgh (Sat 8:00PM ET, ACC Network)
- Stanford (2-3) vs Washington (Sat 10:30PM ET, ESPN)
Past Opponents
- New Mexico (2-2) at San Jose State (Fri 10:00PM ET, CBS Sports Network)
- Georgia (4-0) at Tennessee (Sat 7:00PM ET, ESPN)
Schedule Strength
Last week, Notre Dame’s 2019 opponents went 3-6. On the year, Irish opponents are 31-20 (61% win rate) with an average schedule strength of 82.
Rank |
Team |
Record |
Change |
| 1 |  Stanford | 2-3 | ↑ 1 |
| 10 |  Southern Cal | 3-2 | ↑ 12 |
| 18 |  Notre Dame | 3-1 | ↑ 7 |
| 53 |  Virginia | 4-1 | ↑ 52 |
| 62 |  Louisville | 2-2 | ↑ 2 |
| 70 |  Georgia | 4-0 | ↓ 5 |
| 78 |  Duke | 3-1 | ↑ 20 |
| 97 |  Michigan | 3-1 | ↓ 52 |
| 108 |  Bowling Green | 1-3 | ↑ 3 |
| 111 |  Virginia Tech | 2-2 | ↑ 18 |
| 123 |  New Mexico | 2-2 | ↑ 2 |
| 125 |  Boston College | 3-2 | ↓ 3 |
| 146 |  Navy | 2-1 | ↑ 57 |
Powered by SC schadenfreude, husband to Mrs. IrishElvis (not pictured), rabble rouser. TCB.
- Opponent Watch: Ground Game Edition - October 24, 2019
- Opponent Watch: Royale With Cheese Edition - October 17, 2019
- Opponent Watch: Bee-Deviled Edition - October 10, 2019
