With the announcement last week of the Irish joining the ACC for the 2020 season, many outlets needed to adjust their preseason rankings to account for this massive change. ESPN has just updated their Football Power Index and it looks fairly favorable for Notre Dame.
When looking at the numbers, there are plenty of them when breaking down the FPI, they Irish are almost assured of having a bowl game, as long as more of them don’t get canceled. With a 89.3% chance at more than 6 wins, you can bring that one to the back. The problem when looking further into the FPI is that the projection model has Notre Dame winning only one more game past that threshold.
ESPN’s projections have a final record of 7-3, but there is a silver lining to this, a chance to bring home an ACC Title. Clemson is the overwhelming favorite to win the conference, as the FPI gives the Tigers an 88.7% chance to bring home the hardware. The Irish rank second, and although chances are slim at 4.3%, it’s still a chance.
There’s a smaller chance the Irish win out, at a minute 0.2%, and even smaller chance to win the national title at 0.1%. Playoff’s are now the gold standard goal of ever program, and the FPI gives the Irish a 1.6% chance at making the coveted final four.
Getting an opportunity to play for a title in 2020 would be fantastic, even if it is an ACC one. How awesome would it be to play in a conference for a season, win the ACC title and ride off into an independence sunset hoisting the trophy and heading to the playoffs. Hopefully the FPI is off and that’s exactly how the 2020 season plays out for the Irish.