What’s at Stake for Notre Dame in the Showdown vs. Texas A&M?

Not long ago, a season-opening loss for Notre Dame at Miami might have been considered enough to keep it from a shot at the College Football Playoff. Now with 12 teams making the postseason tournament that isn't the case, but wiggle room certainly doesn't exist entering the second game of 2025.

No. 8 Notre Dame (0-1) welcomes No. 16 Texas A&M (2-0) to Notre Dame Stadium this Saturday night in a marquee showdown, but even more is at stake for Notre Dame than a potential trip back to the College Football Playoff.

Notre Dame Hosts Texas A&M: What's At Stake for Irish

In talking with fellow Notre Dame On SI scribe John Kennedy on his Always Irish show this week, we discussed expectations for the Irish one game into 2025, compared to what they were entering the season (my segment begins at the one hour mark of the video posted below).

As I said before the year, the expectation of national championship or bust for any team that isn't Alabama in Nick Saban's heyday or Notre Dame in Frank Leahy's prime is absurd. You can have a plenty successful year without hoisting the big trophy at the end of it, but what would that look like for 2025 Notre Dame, and how does Saturday's game against Texas A&M play into it?

Notre Dame Football - Still on the Rise?

Notre Dame went all the way to the national championship in 2024 and entered 2025 clearly as a program on the rise. Now, one loss at Miami by three points doesn't change the entire state of the Fighting Irish football program, but one could argue a loss to Texas A&M would.

If Notre Dame is 0-2, certainly knocked out of potentially hosting a College Football Playoff game, and potentially knocked out of the Playoff as a whole by losing to Texas A&M, then the argument will be able to be made that it's no longer on the cusp, like it entered 2025.

There isn't a staying the course in college football. You're either improving as a program or declining. If you're staying the same then you're falling behind. A loss to Texas A&M on Saturday night would point Notre Dame back in that direction just two games into the year.

Notre Dame Football - Protecting the Home Field

After losing in Week 2 to Georgia in 2017, Notre Dame didn't lose a single home game until falling to Cincinnati in 2021.

Since then, Notre Dame has lost to Marshall, Stanford, Ohio State, and Northern Illinois in South Bend. It hasn't had an unbeaten season at home since the Covid year of 2020.

I understand that Notre Dame Stadium is never going to be confused with Death Valley (either of them, for that matter), or Neyland Stadium in Tennessee as the loudest stadium in college football, but that doesn't mean it can't be hell for opponents to play at it.

Although a 12-0 record is out of the question for Notre Dame in 2025, going undefeated at home for the first time in a half-decade isn't, and that starts with Saturday night's game against Texas A&M.

If not? Then it's likely so long College Football Playoff and hello Pop-Tarts or Tony the Tiger Bowl.