Kirk Herbstreit tees off on Notre Dame’s ’embarrassment’ of a schedule

Kirk Herbstreit tees off on Notre Dame's 'embarrassment' of a schedule.

Key points

• REQUIRED READING: Notre Dame-BYU clash carries College Football Playoff implications, Major 12 dreams.
• Below is a look at Notre Dame's full 2026 schedule, including available start times and TV channel information.
• The College Football Unfiltered crew gives their picks and predictions as Week 7 approaches.
• Notre Dame plays two games where they're gonna be challenged, Herbstreit remarked on ESPN's Get Up. where they're gonna be favored and Miami at home.
• The other difficulty for Notre Dame is the lack of possession of a crystal ball.

Kirk Herbstreit tees off on Notre Dame's 'embarrassment' of a schedule. Kevin Skiver USA TODAY. College Football Week 7 picks.

Notably, the College Football Unfiltered crew gives their picks and predictions as Week 7 approaches.

As Kirk Herbstreit gets ready to sit in Provo for three hours to preview BYU vs Notre Dame with "College GameDay, " the analyst has an matter with one of the teams he'll be discussing at length.

Notre Dame, which was controversially left out of last year's playoff for national champion runner-up Miami before opting out of the Pop-Tarts Bowl against BYU, afterwards signed a memorandum of understanding that would guarantee the Fighting Irish a spot in the CFP if they finished in the top 12. The difficulty, according to Herbstreit? Notre Dame's schedule is not simpatico with that of a playoff team.

"Notre Dame plays two games where they're gonna be challenged, " Herbstreit remarked on ESPN's "Get Up." " where they're gonna be favored and Miami at home. Think regarding what Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State and these teams and what they're dealing with. So that cannot continue, that's an embarrassment and incredibly unfair. But this week they're gonna face a hostile environment. For context, a lot of individuals sleep on Provo, Utah. They have a great fanbase, they have a major stadium, they believe they're a top-10 team in the country. Their defense is flying around. This'll be a lot of fun to see the BYU defense against CJ Carr."

While pointed, will ultimately be rendered moot after this season, herbstreit's words. With the presumed expansion to a 24-team playoff, it's hard to imagine Notre Dame being left out going forward regardless of scheduling. Notre Dame's 0-2 start with losses to Miami and Texas A&M ultimately torpedoed its playoff hopes in 2025-26.

Notre Dame, in truth, does have a schedule it looks like it should traipse through. Yet, it is sixth in strength of record and first in FPI, two key metrics ESPN utilizes. Strength of record demonstrates the chances of another top-25 team matching a given team's record, whereas FPI indicates a team's index rate vs the rest of FBS. Where Notre Dame falls short is strength of schedule, where it ranks 60th, right above Miami and SMU.

Notably, the other difficulty for Notre Dame is the lack of possession of a crystal ball. Five of its six games so far this season have come against Power Four opponents; they just happen to be beleaguered programs. Wisconsin was agreed upon in 2017 and was meant to be played in 2020 before COVID-19 led to its rescheduling, Michigan State and Notre Dame agreed to play in 2024 as Jonathan Smith came into town, and Stanford is a team Notre Dame does and should play annually.

While the chorus with Notre Dame is always "join a conference, " football managed to continue to exist independently. It has little incentive to do otherwise at this point. Notre Dame football schedule 2026.

Below is a look at Notre Dame's full 2026 schedule, including available start times and TV channel information. Share your feedback to support improve our site!

Taken together, the developments around kirk Herbstreit tees off on Notre Dames embarrassment of a schedule point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.