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Notre Dame

Where does Notre Dame football rank in the Week 5 AP poll?

Kyle Kellyby: Kyle Kelly8 hours agoByKyleKelly
Marcus Freeman
Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman. (Mike Miller/Blue & Gold)

Notre Dame football’s (1-2) 56-30 win over Purdue (2-1) on Saturday strengthened its résumé in the eyes of Associated Press poll voters.

On Sunday, the Irish secured the No. 22 spot in the Week 5 AP top 25. They moved up two slots from last week’s No. 24 ranking and still remain as the only two-loss team ranked. Earlier on Sunday, Notre Dame claimed No. 21 in the USA TODAY Sports coaches poll.

Notably, the Irish’s first two opponents rank within the top 10. AP Poll voters tapped Miami as the No. 2 team in the country and Texas A&M as No. 9. The only other Notre Dame opponent in the rankings is Southern Cal, which ranks No. 24. Last week, despite their 0-2 record, Marcus Freeman’s program was ranked one spot ahead of the Trojans.

Meanwhile, Notre Dame’s College Football Playoff hopes remain alive. Six 2-loss teams made the CFP last year. Two of those squads, Texas and Penn State, lost in their conference championship game. Two more, SMU and Arizona State, qualified automatically as two of the five highest-ranked conference champions. Eventual national champion Ohio State (No. 6) and Tennessee (No. 7) both made the Playoff with an at-large bid. The Irish will need to follow OSU and UT’s path from the year before in 2025.

Ultimately, the CFP rankings, which will be first released on Nov. 4, will dictate Notre Dame’s postseason destiny. Still, the AP Poll remains a valuable indicator of how the rest of the country sees the Irish relative to the rest of college football.

Next Saturday, Notre Dame will have a chance to add to its résumé by beating Arkansas (2-2) on the road. However, that potential win looks weaker than it would have last week. The Razorbacks lost 32-31 to unranked Memphis last Saturday. The week before, Arkansas’ only loss was 41-35 to then-No. 17 Ole Miss.

Week 5 AP Top 25

  1. Ohio State (3-0)
  2. Miami (4-0)
  3. Penn State (3-0)
  4. LSU (4-0)
  5. Georgia (3-0)
  6. Oregon (4-0)
  7. Oklahoma (4-0)
  8. Florida State (3-0)
  9. Texas A&M (3-0)
  10. Texas (3-1)
  11. Indiana (4-0)
  12. Texas Tech (4-0)
  13. Ole Miss (4-0)
  14. Iowa State (4-0)
  15. Tennessee (3-1)
  16. Georgia Tech (4-0)
  17. Alabama (2-1)
  18. Vanderbilt (4-0)
  19. Michigan (3-1)
  20. Missouri (4-0)
  21. Southern Cal (4-0)
  22. Notre Dame (1-2)
  23. Illinois (3-1)
  24. TCU (3-0)
  25. BYU (3-0)

Others receiving votes: Auburn 122, Mississippi St. 102, South Florida 77, Utah 45, Arizona St. 30, Memphis 23, Louisville 23, Maryland 6, UNLV 3, UCF 3 and North Texas 2.