Way-too-early Top 25 projections for 2021 college football season

After joining a conference on a temporary basis for the first time in school history, Notre Dame returns to its normal independent status in 2021. The Fighting Irish nearly won the ACC in their lone shot, making it to the championship game before falling to a Clemson team they took down in the regular season. While the Irish collapsed against Alabama in their College Football Playoff semifinal game, Brian Kelly’s team will be right back in the top 10 to start the new campaign.

Ian Book leaves South Bend as the winningest quarterback in Notre Dame history, having led the Irish to two College Football Playoff appearances in his time as a starter. Notre Dame’s offense will rely more heavily on the young running back tandem of Kyren Williams and Chris Tyree, and Wisconsin transfer Jack Coan will be in the mix to replace Book under center. While the defense ranked first in the ACC in points allowed in 2020, that masked a unit that was hardly elite in stature.

Traditional rivals return to the Fighting Irish schedule in 2021, with USC, Navy, and Purdue all coming to South Bend and Notre Dame traveling to the Bay Area to face Stanford. They also get a neutral-site game against Wisconsin at Soldier Field in Chicago, a Group of Five test from defending American Athletic Conference champion Cincinnati, and five games against ACC opponents thanks to their ongoing agreement with the conference they nearly won in 2020.