Rockne's Roundtable

Lol that's the Tommy Rees style. Hopefully we're a stable team that plays the same way every week and wins. No more beat the crap out of a good team then lose to a team they have no business losing to

How can anyone predict our record? Sure, we can beat anyone ont he schedule, but we can lose to anyone on the schedule. I was at the South Florida game last year, so asking who we will lose to is impossible to predict. Remember losses to Tulsa, Syracuse, Navy UConn. I think we are underdogs in 5 games - USC, Oklahoma,MIchigan, Michagan St, and Stanford. We haven't won many games as an underdog and always manage to lose a couple as favorites.

Let's hope Kelly has rightd the ship, things change for the better and we go 10-2, but we shouldn't get upset when people pick ND to go 6-6. Too often in recent past, the naysayers have been right. Of course if Golson is anything likw he showed us in the spring, I think 10-2 is more liekly than 6-6.

That's why they play the games !

I see 9 or 10 wins. Turnovers will be the key. I just think that adding EG = extending drives, which = defense on the field less, which = more points for us, which = less points for them!

ND if they go 9-3 considering the likely strength of schedule should wind up in the BCS since as long as they hit the minimum qualification level in the standings someone will take them as an at large choice even over teams with better records simply because they sell tickets and bring TV ratings.

If the team is south of that I would imagine they will get the best unfilled bowl game available which I would presume would be a Big 10 game this year given The Ohio State and Penn State's ineligibility.

Assuming that the Big 10 puts 2 teams into BCS games like last year which seems likely as they have teams that have national followings that travel well like Michigan last year I think ND could wind up with say a Meineke Car Care invite which is not a bad game, new years eve in the relatively new Reliant stadium in Houston against a big 12 opponent.

Or the next big 10 bowl down the Ticket City bowl which is basically the old Cotton Bowl game played on new Years Day. Albeit this game would be against a low level conference USA team but still better than the military bowl I would say.

If ND went 8-4 or 9-3 and couldn't get into the BCS could they possibly get a bid to the Capitol One or Outback Bowl if the B1G didn't qualify enough teams?

ashaia,

The days of loving it when ND is counted out have been over for quite a while. We loved it in the 1970s when being "counted out" meant maybe finishing 10th.

Too often in the last 18 years Irish fans have enjoyed saying "I love being under the radar ... that way we can ambush people." And then nothing or very little happens anyway. When you expect 10-2 like last year, they go 8-4. When you maybe anticipate 8-4 like in 2010 or 2008, it's 6-6. When you are maybe bracing yourself for 6-6 like in 2007, it's 3-9.

When will ND be "back"? One of the answers is when its followers think a pre-season No. 11 to 15 ranking is a "rebuilding year."

I don't think this is the year that Notre Dame will have to sweat making a bowl as long as we're at least 6-6. Last year there were 72 bowl-eligible teams for 70 slots. This year, there will be 4 teams that won't be eligible due to NCAA penalties--North Carolina, Ohio State, Penn State, and added just yesterday, UCF. Miami and Oregon could be added to this list later on this year (Miami took a voluntary bowl ban last year, but the NCAA may decide that's not enough).

This year, South Alabama, UTEP, Texas State & UMass join the ranks of FBS. Normally, they wouldn't be eligible for a bowl in their first year, but they may be pressed into service since there may not be enough bowl-eligible teams at the end of this season. Dennis Dodd had a great column yesterday on CBSSPorts.com that spelled out the potential trouble the bowls could find themselves in unless the NCAA Board relaxes their policies. Among the ideas being looked at:

--Allowing a 6-6 team bowl eligibility with a win over an FCS team (Division I-AA) that does not meet scholarship/financial requirements. FBS teams can count one FCS opponent toward bowl eligibility (six wins), but only if that opponent sponsors an average of 90 percent of the 63 scholarships allowed in FCS (56.7 scholarships).

--Allowing in a 6-6 team that had beaten two FCS teams.

--Allowing in a 6-7 team that had lost its seventh game in a conference championship game.

--Allowing in a 6-7 team that played 13 regular-season games.

--Allowing 5-7 teams ranked by APR.

--Allow in a team that is reclassifying.

It'll be interesting to see what happens, but again, I don't think this is the season where ND has to worry too much about their bowl options as long as we finish 6-6.