Notre Dame Football: 3 takeaways from ugly Cotton Bowl loss to Clemson

The College Football Playoff started with a whimper, as Clemson and Notre Dame football squared off with a national championship berth at stake.

Getting off to a hot start was a goal for both teams in the first semifinal matchup of the College Football Playoff, as Notre Dame and Clemson both wanted a shot at the national championship.

Clemson came into the game as the class of the ACC, running the table with relative ease, and handling a quarterback switch towards the midway point of the season. Trevor Lawrence took over for senior Kelly Bryant, and the offense has been one of the best in the country since the switch.

Notre Dame struggled in the first couple of games, with unconvincing wins as they struggled to move the ball down the field with Brandon Wimbush at quarterback. Ian Book stepped in and along with a suffocating defense, the Fighting Irish find themselves in a comfortable position to rejoin college football’s elite teams.

This semifinal was blank, and with the final whistle blown let’s take a look at the three biggest takeaways from the Cotton Bowl.