Just a few more games remain until Notre Dame finds out if their 10-2 record with 10 straight wins is enough to make the playoffs. The way things have shaken out lately it’s going to make Irish fans sweat until the very end. That is, unless we receive some blessings during conference championship weekend.

Here’s the latest poll from 18 Stripes:

18 Stripes Top 20 Poll

Dropped Out:

#18 Michigan
#19 Georgia Tech
#20 Tennessee

We don’t have to think about Michigan for the rest of 2025 thanks to Ohio State breaking their rivalry losing streak in dominant fashion against the Wolverines. I’ve now moved the Buckeyes into the top spot after their 27-9 win in Ann Arbor. Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood and his $12.5 million NIL deal finish his first season with 2,229 passing yards, 9 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions.

It seemed like it was coming but Georgia Tech just ran out of gas this season. After a 16-9 loss to Georgia, the Bees finish the 2025 regular season with 3 losses in their final 4 games. The Dawgs now find themselves favored to win the SEC Championship against an Alabama team they already lost to this season.

Should there be more pressure on the situation at Tennessee? They were blown out at home 45-24 by Vanderbilt (what a season for Clark Lea!) and lost all 4 games to ranked teams in 2025.

Top Games Recap:

Indiana blasted Purdue 56-3 to finish 12-0 in the 2nd year of the Cignetti era. Now a date with destiny against Ohio State awaits. That’s 2 straight winless seasons in the Big Ten for Purdue whose last league win was, fittingly, Indiana before the Cig arrived.

Texas held serve at home to beat previously undefeated Texas A&M 27-17 in Austin. It’s not a huge blow for the Aggies as they’ll get to rest through conference championship weekend before acquiring a playoff seed. The Horns will be lobbying hard for a playoff spot, but that seems unlikely.

Ole Miss won the Egg Bowl 38-19 at Mississippi State with head coach Lane Kiffin bolting to LSU before the playoffs begin. Bold decision! Now, everyone wants to line up the Rebels in the post-season.

Utah won at Kansas 31-21 to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.

In Tempe, the Wildcats of Arizona beat their rivals Arizona State 23-7 to finish with an impressive 9-3 season.

Texas Tech destroyed West Virginia to the tune of 49-0 to move in as favorites to win the Big 12 crown. The Irish will be cheering!

Washington flirted for a while but Oregon won in Seattle 26-14 to all but clinch a playoff spot.

A late touchdown pass saw Oklahoma get past LSU 17-13 in a pretty ugly game. Based on the ugliness some want the committee to drop the Sooners this week in their rankings, but don’t hold your breath that will happen. They’ve held steady in this week’s AP, Coach’s, and 18 Stripes rankings.

Alabama punched their ticket to the SEC Championship following a 27-20 win at Auburn during the Iron Bowl.

BYU trailed 14-0 early then came back to beat UCF convincingly 41-21 to get into the Big 12 title game.

Ten win Virginia! It’s a real thing! The Hoos are headed to the ACC Championship following a 27-7 win against Virginia Tech.

Thanks to a SMU loss (38-35 at California) it’s Duke (49-32 win vs. Wake Forest) headed to the ACC Championship. The Blue Devils could play an important role in Notre Dame’s playoff chances.

Interesting Games to Note:

Bowling Green 45-14 UMass: The Minutemen complete an impressive 0-12 season.

Western Michigan 31-21 Eastern Michigan: That’s the regular season MAC title for Western.

New Mexico 23-17 San Diego State: The Lobos finish an impressive 9-3 this season!

Tulane 27-0 Charlotte: The 49ers just miss out on a winless season at 1-11.

Louisville 41-0 Kentucky: That’s an emphatic win in the Governor’s Cup for the Cardinals. The Wildcats fired Mark Stoops after 13 seasons with the program in response.

Clemson 28-14 South Carolina: Dabo Swinney ends the campaign at 7-5 while the Cocks finish a more embarrassing 4-8. Both were ranked in the pre-season polls.

Kansas State 24-14 Colorado: Was this the last game Coach Prime sees out with the Buffaloes?

Florida 40-21 Florida State: These teams combined to go 9-15 this season. Woof.

Opponent Recap:

Miami (10-2): Pitt was no challenge as Miami inches closer to a playoff spot (and major drama with Notre Dame) following a 38-7 win.

Texas A&M (11-1): So close, yet so far away from glory after losing to Texas.

Purdue (2-10): It’s not getting better any time soon.

Arkansas (2-10): A winless (0-8) season in the SEC concludes following a 31-17 loss to Missouri. The Hogs are hiring Ryan Silverfield from Memphis.

Boise State (8-4): A comeback 25-24 win at Utah State sees the Broncos get into the Mountain West title game.

NC State (7-5): The Wolfpack ripped apart visiting North Carolina 42-19 with Bill Belichick finishing the season 4-8.

USC (9-3): The Trojans pulled away late from UCLA 29-10 for a decent finish to 2025.

Boston College (2-10): Syracuse briefly led 6-3 and then the Eagles controlled things to win 34-12 inside the dome.

Navy (9-2): Back on Thursday, Navy beat Memphis 28-17 but despite a 7-1 AAC record they don’t get into the league championship game.

Pittsburgh (8-4): A reminder from my pre-season article that Pitt’s 6.5 wins total from the pre-season was easy money.

Syracuse (3-9): You never want to lose convincingly to Boston College these days.

Stanford (4-8): I get the sense that Andrew Luck is a smart guy but likes the smell of his own Stanford Farts and that program is going to continue slumping in the wrong direction.