Notre Dame has a huge contest against the Stanford Cardinal this weekend. Notre Dame has an outside chance at a BCS bowl and need to show the world they can beat an elite team. Notre Dame is ranked number 22 in the country and Stanford is ranked at number 5 so it is not inconceivable if Notre Dame wins that they could move up the 8 spots needed in order to be eligible for a Bowl Championship Series bid.
The way it works is Notre Dame needs to have a 9-3 record and be ranked in the top 14 in order to be eligible for a bid and of course if they beat Stanford they should meet both requirements.
Notre Dame will definitely be an underdog in this game. Notre Dame has been in this position before during this season and each time they have lost to teams they were just as good as or better than. So it is hardly a slam dunk that the Fighting Irish will win this one.
Stanford has a very good team and the Irish have only seen one quarterback better than Andrew Luck and that was Matt Barkley in a loss to USC. Stanford is a power running team and has a pro style offense that will test ND’s defense all game long.
Stanford is no doubt the better team but Notre Dame has been known to win these games before, although not lately. Waking up the echoes is not exactly what Notre Dame has been doing the last 20 years, but they now have an excellent chance to show the world they are ready for prime time by beating a Stanford team that should be a huge favorite.
Notre Dame is still in on some great recruits and a game like this will mean something to them. Kelly needs a signature victory that great coaches are known for. This will be the highest rated team he will have beaten in his short time at ND if the Irish do indeed pull off the upset.
Here are possible Bowls: Sugar, Fiesta, Orange, Rose. Gator and Insight, If ND loses the game take the first four bowls off and add some bowls that may not even have the same sponsor as last year.