Notre Dame Earns Top Marks from Pro Football Focus: What They Say About Irish

Pro Football Focus very high on Notre Dame following victory over Texas A&M

Nick Shepkowski | Sep 3, 2024

Aug 31, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) attempts to pass the ball during the first quarter against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. / Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

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Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Notre Dame's win at Texas A&M drew significant praise nationally.

The Irish climbed into the top five of the AP Poll top 25, Kirk Herbstreit was praising the program on Tuesday, and the ESPN FPI projections jumped all over Notre Dame following the victory.

But perhaps none of them gave as much praise to Notre Dame as the outlet, Pro Football Focus.

Pro Football Focus Puts Notre Dame in Top 3

Pro Football Focus put out its own rankings on Tuesday and gave huge praise to Notre Dame, ranking the Fighting Irish No. 3 overall.

Notre Dame moves up a few spots thanks to an impressive 23-13 victory on the road over then-No. 20 Texas A&M. Conner Weigman, PFF’s top quarterback prospect in the 2025 NFL Draft, was held to a career-low 28.0 PFF passing grade as the Fighting Irish’s elite defense suffocated the Aggies.

This comes after Notre Dame started the year ranked sixth by Pro Football Focus.

Pro Football Focus Top 25 Following Week 1

3. Notre Dame
6. Oregon
10. Miami

PFF’s Week 2 College Football Top 25⬇️https://t.co/4sIrG3JHBF
— PFF College (@PFF_College) September 3, 2024

Pro Football Focus' full rankings following Week 1 action went as follows:

1. Georgia
2. Ohio State
3. Notre Dame
4. Ole Miss
5. Texas
6. Oregon
7. Penn State
8. Alabama
9. Michigan
10. Miami (FL)
11. Missouri
12. Arizona
13. Tennessee
14. Louisville
15. Oklahoma
16. USC
17. Kansas State
18. Utah
19. Oklahoma State
20. Georgia Tech
21. LSU
22. Kansas
23. Clemson
24. Iowa
25. Iowa State

It's a great start for Notre Dame but obviously comes down to how it finishes. Northern Illinois, Purdue, and Miami University should essentially be layups but Notre Dame has a date with No. 14 Louisville (according to Pro Football Focus, anyway).

The good news is that essentially three games of prep come for Notre Dame before that test.