Notre Dame College Football Playoff predictions: How far will the Irish go?

Notre Dame’s College Football Playoff draw placed the No. 7 Irish in the bottom half of the bracket. Their path to the national championship is No. 10 Indiana, No. 2 Georgia and either No. 6 Penn State, No. 10 SMU or No. 3 Boise State.

Many national experts believe Notre Dame will emerge from that gantlet and play in the national championship game. One even picked the Irish to win it all.

Here’s what every credible media member Blue & Gold could find on the internet believes Notre Dame will do in the first 12-team College Football Playoff.

ESPN (Adam Rittenberg): National championship, loss to Oregon

“The first 12-team CFP will appropriately conclude with one of the sport’s newer superpowers in Oregon facing a Notre Dame team steeped in tradition and lore. Both teams are largely built at the line of scrimmage, although both also have veteran quarterbacks — Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel, Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard — as well as standout running backs and individual defenders. The matchup also features two of the sport’s best young coaches in Oregon’s Dan Lanning and Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman, both 38 years old. But Oregon has been the nation’s most complete and consistent team in a season filled with flaws and chaos. The Ducks certainly can be beat, but they lack an obvious weakness and have the edge at most position groups.

“USC showed how to attack Notre Dame’s defense, and Oregon likely will take a similar approach (without the devastating turnovers, of course). Gabriel caps a record-setting college career with a clean and efficient performance, finding three different players for touchdown catches. Notre Dame’s run game keeps the game close for a while, but the Irish just don’t have the firepower to keep up. Oregon secures its first national title for 86-year-old Phil Knight and further establishes itself as a heavyweight in the sport.” — Rittenberg

The Athletic (Bruce Feldman): Quarterfinals, loss to Georgia

“Notre Dame’s O-line, which was such a question mark early in the season, has held up very well, allowing just 15 sacks in 12 games. But Georgia’s front seven is scary — just ask Ewers and Texas, whose solid O-line the Dawgs have overwhelmed twice. I do think the Irish’s defense is good enough to keep this one close, but the Georgia athleticism comes at you in waves. The Bulldogs will force a big turnover or two in the second half to pull away.” — Feldman

Fox Sports (RJ Young): First round, loss to Indiana

“The Fighting Irish will face the most complete team they’ve seen all year in Indiana. The Hoosiers have beaten 10 out of 12 opponents by double digits and believe they are the best team in the state of Indiana. However, Al Golden’s defense has been outstanding, allowing only one team to score 35 points in a game this season. Winner: Indiana.” — Young

CBS (Tom Fornelli): National championship, loss to Oregon

“Lots of belief in the Fighting Irish from Tom, who has Notre Dame taking down Indiana, Georgia and Penn State in succession to reach the CFP National Championship. Not as much belief in ND as someone else, though, as Tom has Oregon avoiding any Big Ten rematches on the way to the program’s first national title.” — Adam Silverstein

CBS (Richard Johnson): National champions, win over Oregon

“This would be quite a run for Notre Dame and coach Marcus Freeman if Richard is on point with the Fighting Irish winning their first national championship since 1988. It would include Notre Dame beating offensive powerhouse Indiana, knocking off the 2021-22 national champions in Georgia and taking down the nation’s only remaining undefeated team. Luck of the Irish, indeed.” — Silverstein

The following projections did not provide an explanation for Notre Dame’s playoff fate…

• CBS (Dennis Dodd): Quarterfinals, loss to Georgia

• CBS (Shehan Jeyarajah): National championship, loss to Ohio State

• CBS (Chip Patterson): Quarterfinals, loss to Georgia

• CBS (John Talty): Quarterfinals, loss to Georgia

• CBS (Brandon Marcello): Semifinals, loss to Penn State

• CBS (Brad Crawford): Quarterfinals, loss to Georgia

• Action Network (Brett McMurphy): Quarterfinals, loss to Georgia

• ESPN (Andrea Adelson): National championship, loss to Texas

• ESPN (Kyle Bonagura): First round, loss to Indiana

• ESPN (Bill Connelly): National championship, loss to Oregon

• ESPN (David Hale): National championship, loss to Ohio State

• ESPN (Eli Lederman): National championship, loss to Oregon

• ESPN (Chris Low): Quarterfinals, loss to Georgia

• ESPN (Max Olson): First round, loss to Indiana

• ESPN (Mark Schlabach): Quarterfinals, loss to Georgia

• ESPN (Jake Trotter): National championship, loss to Oregon

• ESPN (Paolo Uguetti): National championship, loss to Oregon

• ESPN (Dave Wilson): Quarterfinals, loss to Georgia