Who To Watch

Pittsburgh (7-5) vs Clemson (12-0), Sat 8:00 PM ET on Fox

via GIPHY

There are some formalities remaining, but let’s start some postseason football, y’all. Pittsburgh likes to play spoiler, and they held Notre Dame to a closer-than-comfortable final earlier this season, but they take on the Clemson Tigers this weekend for the ACC crown. A high-scoring affair favors Dabo Swinney’s squad, as Pitt prefers to keep things more of a defensive slog, where their scheme and coaching prowess can overcome elite offensive playmaking ability.

Should the expected results hold, Irish fans watching this game will see Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence and tailback Travis Etienne against a Panther defense that is….well, it’s not as good as Clemson’s squad. The Tigers are statistically solid across the board, and this one shouldn’t be close.

Also this Week

• Virginia Tech (5-6) vs Marshall (Sat 12:00 PM ET, ACC Network)
• Stanford (7-4) at California (Sat 3:00 PM ET, ACC Network)
• Northwestern (8-4) vs Ohio State (Sat 8:00 PM ET, Fox)

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 6-6. On the year, opponents have a combined record of 75-67 (52.8%) with an average schedule strength of 41.

Rank	Team		Record	Weekly Change
13		Stanford	7-4	↑ 3
15		Florida State	5-7	↑ 10
19		Pittsburgh	7-5	↑ 3
23		Southern Cal	5-7	↑ 6
26		Northwestern	8-4	↓ 22
29		Michigan	10-2	↑ 7
39		Vanderbilt	6-6	↓ 13
44		Notre Dame	12-0	↑ 5
53		Wake Forest	6-6	↓ 13
58		Virginia Tech	5-6	↓ 10
64		Syracuse	9-3	↑ 13
66		Navy	3-9	↓ 6
90		Ball State	4-8	↑ 5

The post Opponent Watch: Cheeseburger Edition appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Syracuse (4-1) at Pittsburgh (2-3), Sat 12:20 PM ET on ACC Network

via GIPHY

First things first: apparently “have your mascots available in gif form” is a thing that Pitt does (let’s pour one out to the vastly superior ND media/video group for their social media idiocy). But onto the game: this early Saturday matchup gets you two future ND opponents. Syracuse falls out of the Top 25 after a close loss at Clemson, so they’ll try to bounce back as a three-point road dog at Pittsburgh.

Pitt will need to constrain Cuse’s high-octane offense, and the strategies employed on both sides of the ball should be instructive to the Irish coaching staff later this season. Syracuse’s defense allows just over 21 points per game on average, albeit against a weaker slate of opponents. Pitt will also attempt to counter Syracuse’ various offensive weapons, and the extent to which they can contain the QB run threat and a balanced pass/run attack should shape how the Irish structure their offensive gameplan next week.

Also this Week

Other Upcoming Opponents

• Northwestern (1-3) at Michigan State (Sat 12:00 PM ET, Fox Sports 1)
• Florida State (3-2) at Miami (Sat 3:30 PM ET, ABC)
• Navy (2-2) at Air Force (Sat 3:30 PM ET, CBS Sports Network)

Past Opponents

• Michigan (4-1) vs Maryland (Sat 12:00 PM ET, ABC)
• Ball State (2-3) vs Northern Illinois (Sat 3:00 PM ET, Watch ESPN)
• Wake Forest (3-2) vs Clemson (Sat 3:30 PM ET, ESPN)
• Vanderbilt (3-2) at Georgia (Sat 7:30 PM ET, SEC Network)
• Stanford (4-1) vs Utah (Sat 10:30 PM ET, ESPN)

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 7-4. On the year, opponents have a combined record of 34-23 (59.6%) with an average schedule strength of 59.

Rank	Team		Record	Weekly Change
3		Southern Cal	3-2	-1
7		Northwestern	1-3	+12
13		Stanford	4-1	+21
15		Notre Dame	5-0	+13
21		Pittsburgh	2-3	+15
37		Florida State	3-2	+17
43		Michigan	4-1	+15
80		Wake Forest	3-2	-30
89		Virginia Tech	3-1	+67
90		Vanderbilt	3-2	-52
97		Syracuse	4-1	+60
112		Navy	2-2	-9
118		Ball State	2-3	-40

The post Opponent Watch: Oranges Have Seeds, Not A Pitt Edition appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Miami vs North Carolina (Sat 3:30 PM ET ABC)

Credit: Miami Herald

The Irish have a late kickoff against Stanford, so here’s a good afternoon game. Notre Dame’s next coach Larry Fedora has the Tarheel offense clicking, but Miami’s defense has shown signs of life this season.

Will Miami’s offense keep up with UNC’s scoring? The winner of this game will be in good position in the ACC’s Coastal Division.

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 6-6. On the year, opponents have a combined record of 37-28 (56.9%) with an average schedule strength of 55.

Other Upcoming Opponents

• Army vs Lafayette (Sat 12:00 PM ET CBS Sports Network)
• Southern Cal at Arizona (Sat 3:30 PM ET Fox)
• Virginia Tech at Syracuse (Sat 3:45 PM ET ESPNU)

Past Opponents

• Duke at Louisville (Fri 7:00 PM ET ESPN)
• NC State at Clemson (Sat 12:00 PM ET ABC)
• Michigan State vs Northwestern (Sat 3:30 PM ET Big Ten Network)
• Texas vs Iowa State (Sat 7:00 PM ET ESPN3)
• Nevada at San Jose State (Sat 10:30 PM ET CBS Sports Network)

The post Opponent Watch: Look What the Hurricanes Blue In appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Miami vs Florida State (Sat 8:00 PM ET ABC)

Credit: Miami Herald

As Hurricane Matthew encroaches on the southeastern United States, sit down to watch a good ol’ primetime matchup in the Sunshine State. This rivalry hit its heyday in the early ’90s with missed field goals aplenty, but first-year coach Mark Richt (did you know he went to Miami?) has the ‘Canes rolling thus far. However, as you’ll see below, they’ve not been tested with top-tier competition as yet.

That will change on Saturday night, as the Seminoles bring solid, if not top-flight talent, to Doak Campbell Stadium. FSU is reeling from consecutive losses to a very good Lamar Jackson Lousiville squad and a boooooming kick last week at the final gun by North Carolina. FSU has a thing with kickers, so we’ll see if this one is tight. Brad Kaaya will probably be the best quarterback that Notre Dame faces this season, which should scare anyone who’s seen the Irish defense play.

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 4-5. On the year, opponents have a combined record of 31-21 (59.6%) with an average schedule strength of 66.

Other Upcoming Opponents

• Navy vs Houston (Sat 3:00 PM ET CBS Sports Network)
• Virginia Tech at North Carolina (Sat 3:30 PM ET )
• Army at Duke (Sat 3:30 PM ET ACC Network)
• Southern Cal vs Colorado (Sat 4:00 PM ET Pac-12 Network)
• Stanford vs Washington State (Sat 10:30 PM ET ESPN)

Past Opponents

• Texas vs Oklahoma (Sat 12:00 PM ET Fox Sports 1)
• Michigan State vs BYU (Sat 3:30 PM ET )
• Syracuse at Wake Forest (Sat 7:00 PM ET ESPN3)
• Nevada vs Fresno State (Sat 7:00 PM ET ESPN3)

The post Opponent Watch: Hurricanes in a Hurricane? appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Stanford at Washington (Fri 9:00 PM ET ESPN)

You may want to see a good football team with rigorous academic standards this weekend. If so, then tune in Friday night to watch Stanford. This is shaping up to be a play-in game for the Pac-12 championship and, as you can see below, Stanford has been doing it against the sixth-toughest schedule in the country. Christian McCaffrey isn’t getting the hype of Louisville’s Lamar Jackson, and he disappeared for a good stretch against UCLA last week. But as the calendar turns to October, an undefeated Cardinal will keep McCaffrey in the national spotlight. You can cheer for Stanford here, but know that you’ll be seeing this team take on Notre Dame in a couple weeks. Hopefully, the Irish defense on October 15 bears little resemblance to the defense we’ve seen thus far.

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 3-6. On the year, opponents have a combined record of 27-16 (62.8%) with an average schedule strength of 75.

Other Upcoming Opponents

• Miami at Georgia Tech (Sat 12:00 PM ET ESPN2)
• NC State vs Wake Forest (Sat 3:30 PM ET ACC Network)
• Navy at Air Force (Sat 3:30 PM ET CBS Sports Network)
• Southern Cal vs Arizona State (Sat 8:30 PM ET Fox)

Past Opponents

• Texas at Oklahoma State (Sat 12:00 PM ET ABC)
• Duke vs Virginia (Sat 12:30 PM ET ACC Network)
• Michigan State at Indiana (Sat 8:00 PM ET Big Ten Network)
• Nevada at Hawaii (Sat 11:59 PM ET )

The post Opponent Watch: Friday Night Lights appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Virginia Tech at Tennessee (Sat 8:00 PM ET ABC)

Credit: HokieSports.com

Well, after all of the dizzying disorientation of Sunday night, I’m recommending a football game encircled by a racetrack. The Hokies will get the green flag against the orange-clad Volunteers, and we’ll see if the Tennessee hype machine is clicking on all cylinders. Hopefully this novelty will be a nice cool down lap from a victory over Nevada, but my internal caution flags wave every time I think about Brian VanGorder’s defense….

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 11-1 with an average schedule strength of 116. Texas had the toughest win (sad face), USC had the toughest loss (Alabama), and Miami had the easiest win over Florida Atlantic.

Upcoming Opponents

• Syracuse vs Louisville (Fri 8:00 PM ET ESPN2)
• NC State at East Carolina (Sat 12:00 PM ET )
• Army vs Rice (Sat 12:00 PM ET CBS Sports Network)
• Southern Cal vs Utah State (Sat 2:00 PM ET Pac-12 Network)
• Duke vs Wake Forest (Sat 3:30 PM ET ESPNU)
• Navy vs Connecticut (Sat 3:30 PM ET CBS Sports Network)
• Miami vs Florida Atlantic (Sat 6:00 PM ET ACC Network)

Past Opponents

• Texas vs UTEP (Sat 7:00 PM ET Longhorn Network)

The post Opponent Watch: Pit Stop Edition appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Southern Cal vs Alabama (Sat 8:00 PM ET ABC)

Credit: Scout.com

Welcome back, Loyal Readers! And welcome back, college football!

Prepare to settle in for a monster opening weekend. There will be many great games, but you’ll want to see SC and ‘Bama tangle during primetime.

The eyes of Texas were going to be watching Notre Dame during this timeslot before the UT athletics folks moved the game to Sunday, so drink it in. The last time a squad from Southern California rolled into Texas, Santa Anna was involved. Methinks their Conquest will be nonexistent this time around. USC will be breaking in two new faces at quarterback against Nick Saban’s new defensive coordinator. A USC loss usually isn’t a bad thing, but I can’t bring myself to find a rooting interest. Let’s hope a sinkhole develops and we’ll all go home happy.

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Preseason rankings are meaningless, but during the season I’ll use Sagarin Rankings for schedule strength to track Irish opponents here.

Upcoming Opponents

• NC State vs William & Mary (Thu 7:30 PM ET ESPN3)
• Michigan State vs Furman (Fri 7:00 PM ET Big Ten Network)
• Syracuse vs Colgate (Fri 7:00 PM ET ESPN3)
• Army at Temple (Fri 7:00 PM ET ABC)
• Stanford vs Kansas State (Fri 9:00 PM ET Fox Sports 1)
• Nevada vs Cal Poly (Fri 9:30 PM ET)
• Navy vs Fordham (Sat 12:00 PM ET CBS Sports Network)
• Virginia Tech vs Liberty (Sat 12:30 PM ET ESPN3)
• Duke vs North Carolina Central (Sat 6:00 PM ET ESPN3)
• Miami vs Florida A&M (Sat 6:00 PM ET ESPN3)

The post Opponent Watch or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Meteor appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Clemson vs North Carolina (Sat 8pm ET ABC)

Notre Dame’s Jerry Tillery (99), left, and Jaylon Smith (9) bring down Clemson’s Deshaun Watson(4). SBT Photo/ROBERT FRANKLIN

The Other Tigers finished 2015 unblemished, but North Carolina has the opportunity to play the heel on Saturday, to borrow a wrestling term. Deshaun Watson will try to (sher)lock up a top playoff seed. I’m convinced an undefeated Iowa is the most that the Chaos Theory Gods will throw our way this year, but perhaps Larry Fedora’s squad will throw their hat in the playoff ring with a championship game upset.

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 5-7. On the year, ND opponents are a combined 77-65 (54.2%), with an average schedule strength of 38.

Past Opponents

• Texas at Baylor (Sat 12pm ET ESPN)
• Temple at Houston (Sat 12pm ET ABC)
• Stanford vs Southern Cal (Sat 7:45pm ET ESPN)

The post Opponent Watch: ACCentuate the Positive appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Stanford vs California (Sat 10:30pm ET ESPN)

The Irish will finish their 2015 campaign in Palo Alto. (Daniel Hartwig via Flickr)

I nearly recommended that ND fans should watch USC vs. Oregon at 3:30pm on Saturday, but that would betroy my readers’ trust. Southern Cal has the chance to punch a ticket to the Pac-12 title game, which would aid ND’s playoff hopes, but…come Helen high water I can’t bring myself to root for our rival.

Instead, click over (from NBC Sports Network!!!) to ESPN and watch The Game…that’s laterally the name of this rivalry. Cal’s offense has been as unsteady as their stadium foundation, and we’ll see if Stanford can handle the Golden Bears & the Golden Domers in consecutive weeks.

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 5-6. On the year, ND opponents are a combined 66-53 (55.5%), with an average schedule strength of 40.

Past Opponents

• Temple vs Memphis (Sat 12pm ET ESPN3)
• Georgia Tech at Miami (Fl) (Sat 12:30pm ET ESPN3)
• Massachusetts vs Miami (Oh) (Sat 1pm ET ESPN3)
• Southern Cal at Oregon (Sat 3:30pm ET ESPN)
• Virginia vs Duke (Sat 3:30pm ET)
• Wake Forest at Clemson (Sat 3:30pm ET ESPN2)
• Pittsburgh vs Louisville (Sat 3:45pm ET ESPN News)
• Navy at Tulsa (Sat 7pm ET)

The post Opponent Watch: Bearly Tolerable Edition appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.

Who To Watch

Stanford vs Oregon (Sat 7:30pm ET Fox)

The Irish will finish their 2015 campaign in Palo Alto. (Daniel Hartwig via Flickr)

In a game that will be VERY interesting for Notre Dame fans, the Cardinal head north to Eugene this weekend. The Fox executives probably had grand visions of the importance of this late-season matchup, but this will most likely decide the Pac-12 North champion. Stanford’s offense has been chugging along with increasing regularity as the year has progressed, and Oregon’s passing game will give the Irish a blueprint of what works (and what doesn’t) against the Cardinal secondary.

Strength-of-Schedule Rankings

Last week, ND opponents went 6-4. On the year, ND opponents are a combined 61-47 (56.5%), with an average schedule strength of 41.

Past Opponents

• Georgia Tech vs Virginia Tech (Thu 7:30pm ET ESPN)
• Southern Cal at Colorado (Fri 9pm ET ESPN2)
• Texas at West Virginia (Sat 12pm ET ESPNU)
• Pittsburgh at Duke (Sat 12pm ET ESPN News)
• Virginia at Louisville (Sat 12:30pm ET ESPN3)
• Massachusetts at Eastern Michigan (Sat 3pm ET ESPN3)
• Clemson at Syracuse (Sat 3:30pm ET ABC/ESPN2)
• Navy vs SMU (Sat 3:30pm ET CBS Sports Network)
• Temple at South Florida (Sat 7pm ET CBS Sports Network)

The post Opponent Watch: Hail Mariota Edition appeared first on Her Loyal Sons.