Notre Dame: Irish have a respectful game against Georgia Bulldogs

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish were by all accounts big underdogs when the took on the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens but they proved they can hang.

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish were thinking they can pull off the major upset against the powerhouse Georgia Bulldogs. They had a lead for the first half by a score of 10-7 but things started fo fall apart in the third quarter. Georgia ended up winning the game by a final score of 23-17 and getting the win by 6 points. The Bulldogs were favored by a blasphemous 14.5 points which is a lot for a number three ranked team against a number seven team.

Notre Dame had a respectable game as they covered the spread and kept the game much closer than people predicted. They had the previously mentioned first-half lead before blowing it but they weren’t even supposed to have a chance.

There really aren’t moral victories at this level of the college football season, especially for a team like Notre Dame. They don’t play in a conference so they play one less game without having a conference title game. That means they pretty much have to have a perfect season to even have a chance to get consideration for the College Football Playoffs. Their playoff chances are dim now after three weeks because even if they go 11-1, there will be other one-loss teams with a better resume. It isn’t impossible for them to make it because a six-point road loss to Georgia isn’t something that should eliminate a team, but it is still bleak.

Georgia is one of the elite teams in the country so although there are no moral victories, they kept it close against a team of that caliber. Most people would agree that Georgia is almost at the same level as Alabama and Clemson and could go on to win the whole thing this year. That would involve them getting into the playoffs which would almost certainly mean they have to defeat Alabama in the SEC Championship Game.

The Irish had a late push but the Georgia defense was too much for Ian Book and the Irish. Jake Fromm played okay for Georgia as he had 187 yards and a touchdown, but he made the plays he needed to make in order to beat Notre Dame. The Bulldogs ultimately had more talent and that outweighed all in this game.

Notre Dame is back at it again next week against another tough opponent. Virginia is currently ranked at 21 and they had a win yesterday against the Old Dominion Monarchs to improve to 4-0. This is a rough two week stretch for Notre Dame but there is no doubt that they will have a chance to beat them and get back on track after a tough loss.