US LBM Coaches Poll No. 6 Notre Dame’s position in the first official College Football Playoff rankings came with surprised, sometimes stunned reactions from fans, experts and more.
But former Irish quarterback Brady Quinn, who is now a Fox Sports college football analyst, said on social media that after last season’s CFP snub and this season’s No. 11 ranking so far, it’s evident “what the bar is” for Notre Dame to reach a 12-team playoff.
Quinn noted that the Fighting Irish, currently 7-1, and a 10-2 record “isn’t good enough with this schedule of games.”
Notre Dame is currently 3-0 against the Big 10, 2-0 versus the ACC and 2-0 against other teams. The team’s only loss was against BYU, a top-10 opponent.
The Irish’s remaining regular-season matchups
are all against ACC teams, including top-ranked Miami and SMU. Quinn, however, said that Notre Dame’s partial affiliation with the ACC “has brought one, maybe two good games a year.”
“It won’t matter once we go to 24 (teams in 2027), but as it currently stands this is the reality,” Quinn added.
After last year and this initial ranking, it’s evident what the bar is for @NDFootball to get into a 12 team playoff. 10-2 isn’t good enough with this schedule of games. The partial affiliation with the ACC has brought one maybe two good games a year. Won’t matter once we go to…
— Brady Quinn (@Brady_Quinn) November 4, 2026
Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.
Follow Kevin on X: @KevLSmittie
This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: Brady Quinn speaks on ND’s position in CFP poll: ‘This is the reality’
