The Worst Thing Notre Dame Can Do

With a 4-0 record and one of the best defenses in the country, there is no doubt that it is exciting times in South Bend. This could be one of the best seasons Notre Dame has had in a very long time. Manti Te'o is arguably the best defensive player in the country and will without a doubt be a candidate for some awards. He will also likely be the first linebacker drafted.

With the excitement of the football team and the exciting new direction the school is going with the ACC, optimism is at an all time high. However, Notre Dame cannot fall into a trap that easy to fall into. That is believing the hype and the talk of a national championship. USC fans are already talking about how they will ruin it for Notre Dame Thanksgiving weekend.

What I tell USC fans is that I am not even thinking about them. I am worried about the convicts right now. The fact is in order to be eligible for a National Championship, they first have to be eligible for the BCS. In order to be eligible for the BCS, they first have to be bowl eligible. With 4 wins, they still need two more to even become bowl eligible.

Therefore, looking ahead is the worst thing this team can do. We would all love to play for a National title but let's get bowl eligible first. The players have to focus on the task at hand. Right now, that is the Miami Hurricanes. 100% of their focus needs to be on that.

The good thing for Notre Dame is that they play a schedule where looking ahead doesn't seem to be a problem. While most schools have maybe four big games a year, Notre Dame plays a game almost every week in which there is a lot of history involved. 

They already played Navy and the three Big Ten teams in Purdue, Michigan State, and Michigan. It seems like every week there is a story behind the rivalry. It is no exception this week with Miami as the Catholics Vs. Convicts rivalry is renewed. In the 80s, this was a huge game every year and usually had national title implications.

Later Notre Dame will play Stanford, Pittsburgh, and Boston College which all have lots of history behind them as well. They will also play non traditional opponents in BYU and Oklahoma in games that are also huge. They end as they traditionally do in Los Angeles to play arch-rival USC. 

There is no doubt that that is a tough road and if Notre Dame can get through it with all wins, they will have definitely earned a trip to the BCS title game. However, they have to focus one game at a time. They can't go  12-0 if they don't go 5-0. 

Go Irish! Beat the Hurricanes!