Notre Dame is hoping to make a jump in the second year of the Marcus Freeman era, improving upon the 9-4 result from the 2022 season. If Notre Dame is going to make a run at the College Football Playoff, it will have to wade through a very challenging schedule.
Notre Dame not only plays three teams that rank in the preseason Top 10, it's a deep schedule that has eight opponents that earned bowl bids in 2022. Below is a ranking of the Notre Dame opponents from easiest to toughest games. The ranking is based on returning talent, projection for the season, when the game is played, and where the game is played.
The ranking included is the USA TODAY Coaches Poll.
12. TENNESSEE STATE TIGERS
Date: September 2nd
2022 Record: 4-7
2023 Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
Former Ohio State star running back and Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George enters his third season as head coach at Tennessee State. The Tigers have gone 9-13 in his first two seasons. This is Notre Dame's first ever matchup against a FCS opponent.
11. CENTRAL MICHIGAN CHIPPEWAS
Date: September 16th
2022 Record: 4-8
2023 Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
All but two of Central Michigan's eight losses were by double digits last season. The return of nine starters on defense is countered by the return of just four starters on offense. Notre Dame should continue its MAC dominance in this matchup.
10. STANFORD CARDINAL
Date: November 25th
2022 Record: 3-9
2023 Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
Obviously Notre Dame cannot afford to overlook Stanford, who beat the Irish in South Bend a season ago. The loss of nine starters on defense and eight starters on defense, combined with having to break in a new quarterback in a new system, should make year one challenging for new head coach Troy Taylor.
9. NAVY MIDSHIPMEN
Date: August 26th
2022 Record: 4-8
2023 Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
Navy enters the first year of the Brian Newberry era, and the Midshipmen will have two new coordinators. Expectations are that Navy will continue to run the option, but it will look different under Grant Chestnut. Navy's expected starting quarterback is out with grade issues, but this being the opener against a team running new systems makes it a bit nerve wracking.
8. WAKE FOREST DEMON DEACONS
Date: November 18th
2022 Record: 8-5
2023 Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
Wake Forest returns just 10 starters, and of course it must replace all-time leading passer Sam Hartman, who will now face against the Deacons. A camp knee injury to talented wideout Donavon Greene is a tough loss, especially after losing AT Perry to the NFL. Wake's defense remains a major problem ever since Mike Elko left.
7. PITTSBURGH PANTHERS
Date: October 28th
2022 Record: 9-4
2023 Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
A case could be made that Pittsburgh should be higher considering the Panthers tend to give the Irish a tough test. Two of the last three matchups were blowouts, and the Panthers had several key losses of NFL talent on both sides of the ball. If quarterback Phil Jurkovec gets back to his 2020 season form this game will be much more challenging.
6. LOUISVILLE CARDINALS
Date: October 7th
2022 Record: 8-5
2023 Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
Louisville enters the Jeff Brohm era, but it might take a little bit of time for the Cardinals to make the transition. Louisville has to remake its offense, returning just four starters, but the defense returns good talent and has several Power 5 transfers on that side of the ball. There's also the concern about playing on the road, and possibly overlooking Louisville with USC coming into town a week later.
5. NC STATE WOLFPACK
Date: September 9th
2022 Record: 8-5
2023 Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
NC State suffered some key losses from its 2022 roster, but the Robert Anae arrival should allow them to make a big jump offensively. He'll also have a quarterback that knows his system thanks to the arrival of former Virginia standout Brennan Armstrong. Anae and defensive coordinator Tony Gibson are one of the best coordinator tandems Notre Dame will face this season, and they do it on the road.
4. DUKE BLUE DEVILS
Date: September 30th
2022 Record: 9-4
2023 Preseason Ranking: Not Ranked
Former Notre Dame defensive coordinator Mike Elko enters his second season at Duke, and he's coming off a brilliant first season. Elko inherited a 3-9 team that lost seven games by at least 25 points. In his first season, Elko led the Blue Devils to nine wins. They return a talented QB in Riley Leonard, and he'll have good weapons around him. The defense also returns good talent up front, and this game comes on the road a week after Notre Dame faces Ohio State. This could be a tougher test than fans might think.
3. SOUTHERN CAL TROJANS
Date: October 14th
2022 Record: 11-3
2023 Preseason Ranking: No. 6
USC once again has the best player in college football leading their offense, but QB Caleb Williams will be breaking in a lot of new faces as the Trojans are once again restocking the roster with transfers. USC will be a talented football team, there's no doubt, and the Trojans added a lot of new faces on defense in hopes of being able to put a unit on the field that can get stops. Notre Dame gets USC at home, and the Irish should be able to handle the trenches better than they did last season.
2. CLEMSON TIGERS
Date: November 4th
2022 Record: 11-3
2023 Preseason Ranking: No. 9
A case could be made that this being a road game should vault Clemson to the No. 1 spot. While I'm sympathetic to that argument, Notre Dame has confidence it can beat Clemson, which helps. The arrival of Garrett Riley at OC and the ascension of Cade Klubnik at quarterback should make the offense better, and Clemson could have one of its best offensive lines in years. Despite losing a pair of first round picks along the defensive line, Clemson returns a lot of talent up front and has one of the best LB/DB units that Notre Dame will face this season.
1. OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
Date: September 23rd
2022 Record: 11-2
2023 Preseason Ranking: No. 4
Notre Dame has not beaten Ohio State in my lifetime, and until the Irish can prove they can beat one of the "big three" of Alabama, Georgia and OSU the Buckeyes will be on top of this ranking. Ohio State also returns a very talented roster, including the best receiving corps in college football and a very talented running back room. Ohio State enters year two of the Jim Knowles era, which should combine with the return of good talent and key transfers to improve that side of the ball. Quarterback Kyle McCord should put up good numbers, but can he make winning plays? That remains to be seen, and Ohio State's offensive line is a trouble spot right now, but I keep going back to Notre Dame needing to prove it can win games like this before I can put anyone ahead of the Buckeyes.
2023 NOTRE DAME SCHEDULE
Aug. 26 - vs. Navy Midshipmen (Dublin, Ireland)
Sep. 2 - Tennessee State Tigers
Sep. 9 - at NC State Wolfpack (Raleigh, N.C.)
Sep. 16 - Central Michigan Chippewas
Sep. 23 - Ohio State Buckeyes
Sep. 30 - at Duke Blue Devils (Durham, N.C.)
Oct. 7 - at Louisville Cardinals (Louisville, Ky.)
Oct. 14 - Southern Cal Trojans
Oct. 21 - Bye Week
Oct. 28 - Pittsburgh Panthers
Nov. 4 - at Clemson Tigers (Clemson, S.C.)
Nov. 11 - Bye Week
Nov. 18 - Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Nov. 25 - at Stanford Cardinal (Stanford, Calif.)
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Irish Breakdown Content
2023 Scholarship Chart
2023 Football Schedule
Notre Dame 2024 Scholarship Offers
2024 Commit Rankings - Offense
2024 Commit Rankings - Defense
2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Offense
2023 Recruiting Class Grades - Defense
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