Joel Klatt details why he has Notre Dame just behind top tier in college football entering 2025

Joel Klatt really likes Notre Dame heading into the 2025 campaign. However, he doesn’t love them. On Monday, the FOX Sports analyst explained why the Fighting Irish aren’t a top-tier team in his eyes entering the upcoming season.

“This was the team that was like the top of this tier, that was not quite a top five [team],” Klatt said. “… Notre Dame has the players. Jeremiyah Love leads the list. This guy is dynamic. I love Jeremiyah Love. The schedule is obviously favorable. It’s front-loaded.

“Early games against Miami and A&M. If they just split those two games, they should be fine and into the CFP. They have an identity under Marcus Freeman.”

Notre Dame’s identity finally came into fruition last season when it made a run to the national championship game. Although the Fighting Irish ultimately fell, they set the tone for the future of the program.

Now, Marcus Freeman and Co. are hungry to build on their momentum. Alas, it won’t be easy. The team is only returning half of its starters from last season, and lost their QB1, Riley Leonard.

In fairness, several players who would’ve been routine starters last season didn’t play due to injury. Nonetheless, the Fighting Irish will undoubtedly face a learning curve early in the season.

As Klatt mentioned, Notre Dame’s schedule isn’t exactly a gauntlet. The Fighting Irish play several quality opponents such as Miami, Texas A&M and USC, but won’t run into any of the teams in the preseason Top 5 until the postseason.

Thus, the Fighting Irish should have time to resolve any issues they face early throughout the season. While Klatt isn’t confident that Notre Dame will be playing for a national title again this year, he has no doubt the Fighting Irish will be successful.

“I just don’t have any questions about this Notre Dame team,” Klatt said. “They know who they are. Freeman has built this program into his image. They were banged up, injury-wise, still played for a national championship. So, Notre Dame leads that next pocket of teams.”

Of course, Notre Dame could break through into Klatt’s upper echelon of teams as the season progresses. After all, very few analysts predicted the Fighting Irish to reach the national championship game last season.

Notre Dame will kick off its 2025 campaign with a showdown against Miami at 7:30 p.m. ET on Aug. 31. The game will air live on ABC.