Notre Dame Ranks 13th In Sporting News Way-Too-Early Top 25

Notre Dame finished 9-4 in the first season of the Marcus Freeman era, which allowed the Irish to finish the 2022 season ranked 18th. Way-too-early rankings are coming out for the 2023 season, and most view the Irish to be a bit better next season than they were in year one of the Freeman tenure.

Sporting News released its way-too-early ranking and it placed the Irish 13th in its first look at rankings for the 2023 season.

"Marcus Freeman won nine games in his first season. Record-setting Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman is headed to Notre Dame and is expected to beat out Tyler Buchner at quarterback and all three pieces of ND's running game (Chris Tyree, Logan Diggs and Audric Estime) are back. Lorenzo Styles and Jayden Thomas lead the receivers. Cornerback Benjamin Morrison leads what will be a rebuilt defense. Home games against Ohio State and USC and a road trip to Clemson are the highlights of a tough schedule." - Bill Bender, Sporting News

Three of Notre Dame's 2023 opponents also cracked the Sporting News Top 25 for next season, including a pair of teams in the Top 10.

Ohio State is Notre Dame's highest ranked opponent, with the Buckeyes coming in at No. 4 in the rankings despite losing star quarterback CJ Stroud and four starting offensive linemen. Ohio State will also have some key defensive players it must replace.

USC checks in at No. 7 on the Sporting News early Top 25 list. The Trojans went into the Pac 12 Conference title game with a chance to earn a playoff berth, but a blowout loss to Utah and a Cotton Bowl loss to Tulane dropped the Trojans out of the Top 10 altogether. But USC still returns Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Caleb Williams, and you can expect a new batch of highly regarded transfers.

Rounding out Notre Dame's opponents in the rankings is the Clemson Tigers, who are ranked No. 14 in Bender's early rankings. Clemson will have to replace some very talented defensive players, but sophomore-to-be quarterback Cade Klubnik is a star in the making.

During the 2022 season, Notre Dame played five teams that were in Bender's Top 25 for 2023. The Irish went 3-2 in those games, beat Clemson, North Carolina and South Carolina while losing to Ohio State and USC.

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