Notre Dame Football: 3 hot takes from blowout win over Pitt

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Oct 24, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers linebacker Phil Campbell III (24) sacks Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Ian Book (middle) during the second quarter at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Notre Dame is still not a top-five team

Don’t get me wrong, I was a doubter of Notre Dame before last weekend because of the lack of quality wins and I was excited to see what the Irish could do against a decent team like Pitt. Before, I didn’t see the Irish as a top-10 or even top-15 team, but after the 45-3 shellacking, the Irish won me back.

Still, the Irish aren’t a top-five team in my books.

Hear me out: this team has the talent and the potential and just added a solid 42-point win on the road against an elite defensive team and preseason ACC contender to the resume, but it’ll need to continue winning impressively consistently. No more 12-7 wins over 1-4 teams or first-half struggles against mediocre ACC foes (Florida State).

No, the Irish need to win out and make quick work of teams like Georgia Tech, Boston College and Syracuse while pushing Wake Forest, North Carolina and Clemson to the wire. If the Irish can win out or even win all but Clemson and make that game close, they deserve serious playoff consideration.

An 11-0 or 10-1 Notre Dame team is top-five worthy, especially if the Irish dominate teams that they’re supposed to and beat a couple of ranked foes.

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