Notre Dame-Clemson game will have 'enormous' impact on College Football Playoff picture

In early November, Notre Dame will travel to Clemson to take on the Tigers. It’s likely going to be one of the premier games of the 2023 season and will shape the outlook for both programs going forward in the season. That includes looking ahead to the College Football Playoff.

As On3’s JD PicKell explained on The Hard Count, there is a chance that when these two teams meet, the outcome will have a massive impact on the College Football Playoff race.

“This is another game that has enormous Playoff implications,” PicKell said. “Notre Dame is going to play Ohio State and USC on their schedule, and if they can get a win against Clemson, I mean two years in a row, they did it last year in South Bend, if they do it in Death Valley, what would that say about Marcus Freeman? What would that say about the direction of Notre Dame under Marcus Freeman?”

“I think we would all have to start taking them very, very seriously as it comes to the College Football Playoff picture.”

Since Dabo Swinney took over at Clemson, the Tigers are 3-2 against Notre Dame. That includes winning the 2020 ACC Championship Game over the Irish. Earlier in that 2020 season, Notre Dame beat Clemson for the first time since the 1977 season. Then, in 2022, Marcus Freeman got a win over Clemson in his first season as Notre Dame’s head coach.

“And, for Clemson, kind of the other side of the coin if you will. Like, Dabo Swinney, there’s been a lot of talk about his way of doing things, and the way they don’t use the portal, and now they hired a new OC with Garrett Riley, and they’ve got Cade Klubnik, like the expectations are extremely high, but the pressure is also extremely at Clemson, South Carolina,” PicKell said.

“So, a game like this, if Clemson were to drop two in a row to Notre Dame, I think there would have to be a reassessment of sorts, as to their approach. I don’t mean they’re gonna go to the portal. I don’t mean they’re gonna just redo their whole staff, but that would be two years in a row which you lose, and I would imagine if you lose this game, it’s because Notre Dame will be the more physical team and they were definitely the more physical team a season ago.”

PicKell went on to explain that Notre Dame has dominated Clemson physically in the past. Clemson, therefore, needs to prove it is tough while the Irish want to announce their arrival.

“So, that’ll be a lot of fun to watch in November, Playoff kind of football.”

The standard at Notre Dame won’t change in 2023

In his first season coaching in South Bend, Marcus Freeman and the Irish went through their share of growing pains. Still, the standard at Notre Dame is to be one of the best teams in college football.

“But I just want to make sure that there’s an understanding of what Notre Dame has been in the past. And Marcus Freeman steps into that and says no, no, just because we haven’t been there super recently, that’s still the standard here at Notre Dame. I don’t care about how difficult it is to get into school here and the ways that we’re hamstrung by being in South Bend, Indiana like we’re still one of those teams that is going to compete for everything that everyone else is competing for nationally,” PicKell said.

“Like they’re looking to make it very, very clear they’re going to abide by the standard that has been set historically from Notre Dame.”