Notre Dame football ranked 13th in preseason coaches poll
Notre Dame football is No. 13 in the preseason USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll Top 25, USA TODAY Sports announced Monday.
The Irish received 841 voting points, seven points shy of No. 12 Texas and just two points ahead of No. 14 Utah. They did not receive a first-place vote, as only three teams did: Georgia (61), Alabama (4) and Ohio State (1).
Notre Dame finished five spots higher than it ranked in the final coaches poll of the 2022-23 season, in which the Irish placed 18th.
The preseason top 25 reinforces how difficult Notre Dame’s schedule will be this season. The Irish will face three of the top 9 teams: No. 4 Ohio State, No. 6 USC and No. 9 Clemson. They also have dates with four more teams who received votes: Pittsburgh (52 voting points), North Carolina State (19), Wake Forest (6) and Duke (2).
While Notre Dame has high hopes for its 2023 season with accomplished Wake Forest graduate transfer quarterback Sam Hartman at the helm, the poll also shows that the Irish will have to prove themselves as legitimate college football playoff contenders before the general public believes it. Notre Dame had a better record at 9-4 in 2022 than only one team ranked ahead of it (Texas at 8-4).
Also notable about the poll: there seems to be a clear cut-off as to who coaches believe are the top 15 teams in the country. The gap between No. 15 Oregon and No. 16 TCU is 165 points, while the gap between Oregon and No. 11 Washington is 121. There’s another drop-off between TCU and No. 17 Kansas State, with a 215-point difference between them.
Notre Dame enters its season with a proven quarterback, which helps explain the jump from the postseason ranking to the preseason one. The Irish also have top-tier offensive tackles and cornerbacks, as well as experienced linebackers who recently received some national buzz.
Question marks from voters likely included an inexperienced receiving corps and the losses of tight end Michael Mayer and pass rusher Isaiah Foskey, two second-round NFL Draft picks who don’t have proven replacements on the roster.
Here is the full USA TODAY Sports Preseason AFCA Coaches Poll Top 25:
- Georgia (61 first-place votes)
- Michigan
- Alabama (4)
- Ohio State (1)
- LSU
- USC
- Penn State
- Florida State
- Clemson
- Tennessee
- Washington
- Texas
- Notre Dame
- Utah
- Oregon
- TCU
- Kansas State
- Oregon State
- Oklahoma
- North Carolina
- Wisconsin
- Ole Miss
- Tulane
- Texas Tech
- Texas A&M
