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Notre Dame Football: 3 bold predictions for Irish vs. Alabama

By Danny McCormick

SOUTH BEND, INDIANA - NOVEMBER 07: Head coach Brian Kelly of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish leads his team out of the tunnel before the game against the Clemson Tigers at Notre Dame Stadium on November 7, 2020 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Matt Cashore-Pool/Getty Images)
SOUTH BEND, INDIANA - NOVEMBER 07: Head coach Brian Kelly of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish leads his team out of the tunnel before the game against the Clemson Tigers at Notre Dame Stadium on November 7, 2020 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Matt Cashore-Pool/Getty Images) /
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Notre Dame football comes into this matchup as a huge underdog. Can the Irish stick around and make this a close game? Maybe pull off one of the biggest upsets in history? Let’s dive into some predictions for the Irish.

Everything was going great for Notre Dame football. The Irish were undefeated, playing in their first ever conference championship game against a team they had already beaten once this season. Right up until about a minute left in the first quarter of the ACC championship game the Irish held a 3-0 league over Clemson. What could go wrong?

To be blunt, everything went wrong for Notre Dame from that point of the ACC championship against Clemson. The wheels fell off for the Irish. Everything that went so well all season did not go well at all. The offense couldn’t move the ball through the air, could not establish the run either, and Clemson seem to get everything they wanted on both of the ball as well.

For many Notre Dame football fans it felt like a nightmare that they would wake up from anytime soon. Problem was that this was very real. It started to get so bad that many started to doubt if Notre Dame would still make the playoffs.

Thankfully for the Irish, the committee decided to put them in the playoff field. Why did they? Because at the end of the day they deserved it. You should not be punished severely for a loss after making it to a conference championship game.

Also, throw in their wins against then #1 ranked Clemson, and a big road win against North Carolina. The Irish earned a trip to the playoffs for the second time in three years.

Yes, their win against Clemson did come when Trevor Lawrence was out due to Covid-19. But Clemson did not lose that game because Lawrence was out.

Texas A&M and Cincinnati had great years, but their resumes were not as strong as Notre Dame’s resume at the end of the day.

Notre Dame faces a daunting task in its playoff matchup as the Irish gear up to play the Alabama Crimson Tide on January 1st in Dallas. The SEC Champions come into this matchup 11-0 after their 52-46 win over the Florida Gators in the SEC Championship game.

Right now, the various sport books are not giving Notre Dame football a true shot. The lines are sitting at a minimum of 18 points with Alabama as the favorite. After Notre Dame loss against Clemson this is very fair.

The Crimson Tide have a lethal trio on the offensive side of the ball. Led by Mac Jones at quarterback, Najee Harris at running back, and the super talented Devonta Smith at wide receiver. All three are Heisman finalists.

What is crazy is usually teams have one Heisman finalist and Alabama has three. Alabama also has some great defensive playmakers as well. A few to mention are defensive back Patrick Surtain II, and linebacker Dylan Moses.

Could Notre Dame football shock the world and beat Alabama? The Irish would need to play a near perfect game on both sides of the ball, but yes it could happen. I mean anything is possible. Just ask the New York Jets and Cincinnati Bengals who both were 17 point underdogs and both won their games a few weeks ago.

Here are 3 bold predictions for the Irish against Alabama.

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