With Saturday unexpectedly opening up the viewing schedule, let’s take a look at some of the best games this weekend for Notre Dame fans to tune into. It’s not the world’s most exciting slate, but there are a few matchups of future ACC opponents that will be telling for what type of challenge the Irish will be up against when they finally return to play.

Future ACC Opponents

Louisville at Pittsburgh (12 pm, ACCN)

This is a fascinating matchup even putting aside that these are two of the next three teams on the Irish schedule. When Louisville has the ball it’s strength on strength with the dynamic Cardinals offense against a terrific and disruptive Pitt defense. When the Panthers have the ball, it’s stoppable force versus moveable object as Kenny Pickett looks to get going against a Louisville defense than was porous in Miami.

From the Notre Dame point of view, every possession has some interest. The Cardinals offensive line was an issue last year, and if Pitt is mauling them it bodes well for the Irish. The Panthers struggled tremendously to move the ball efficiently in 2019, so if Pickett is making plays (and it’s not the result of blown coverages by Louisville) that could be telling. For as much as the loss to the Canes stings, the Louisville defense seems to have some low-hanging fruit for improvement too – this is a good second opinion on whether or not that’s likely or the cracks go all the way to the defensive foundation.

Georgia Tech at Syracuse (12 pm, ESPN3)

The Yellow Jacket rebuild seems to have taken a major step forward, but there’s still a long way to go transitioning from Paul Johnson to Geoff Collins. True freshman QB Jeff Sims looked terrific against FSU but had some typical mistakes that come with inexperience against UCF (still with 240+ yards passing and 80+ on the ground). The Tech defense, which returned virtually its entire two-deep, likewise showed out against the Noles and then took a beating from the Knights.

They’ll have the chance to go 2-1 in ACC play against an Orange team that is in crisis. The team refused to practice several times this fall due to COVID concerns, and Dino Babers’ offense has yet to go over 175 yards total in two games. Allowing only 31 points to UNC and 21 to Pitt constitutes defensive improvement, but this is a check for signs of life from a Syracuse team that may have packed it in by the time they meet the Irish in December.

Texas State at Boston College (6 pm, ESPN3)

Do not actually watch this game, but it’s worth keeping an eye on how the Eagles look. Our old friend Phil Jurkovec threw for over 300 yards, including some long bombs, in the win over Duke despite some early pressure and turnovers. Defensively Jeff Hafley may be in the midst of a quick turnaround with a unit that was in the triple digits of Defensive SP+ in 2019.

FSU at Miami (7 pm, ABC)

The Noles have jumped the line as the next Notre Dame opponent and will be without new head coach Mike Norvell due to COVID. FSU looked like a mess against Georgia Tech in their opener, with QB James Blackman having a sub-200 yard day passing despite 43 attempts. If FSU struggles mightily again, a QB rotation against Jacksonville State and change to a less experienced option for the game in South Bend is very much in play.

The Irish miss the Hurricanes this year, and that might be a good thing, as the new combination of Houston transfer D’Eriq King and new OC Rhett Lashlee has been dynamic early. The Canes have a very tough schedule, with a trip to Clemson coming after this rivalry game followed by Pitt, then UNC to close the year. Still, they have to be considered a second-tier contender for the ACC title game berth if they finally have a competent offense to pair with Manny Diaz usual strong defenses.

General Viewing

A few more games worth tuning into for your viewing pleasure or schadenfreude:

  • Florida at Ole Miss (12 pm, ESPN): Lane Kiffin makes his return to the SEC against a strong Gators team. There could be some early sloppiness in these SEC openers and this game is all upside for the underdogs.
  • Mississippi State at LSU (3:30 pm, CBS): Mike Leach makes his SEC debut! Ed Orgeron attempts to replace his entire team! This will be a nice bellwether if KJ Costello and Leach can put a scare in the west division powers, or if the Tigers are simply reloading versus taking a step back.
  • Army at Cincinnati (3:30 pm, ESPN): if Luke Fickell ever wants to be considered for the Notre Dame job, he, unfortunately, better learn how to defend the triple.
  • NC State at Virginia Tech (8 pm, ACCN): if this game ends up being played it sounds like the Hokies will be extremely limited due to COVID-related absences. In a dark way that could lead to some interesting developments – playing six safeties because there are no linebackers? Running the single-wing with some freshman QB?

Other games out there include the first look at Alabama and UGA, and Oklahoma seeking revenge against Kansas State. This doesn’t qualify as a cheeseburger week, but enjoy some last-second nachos and root for some underdogs and chaos since the playoff berths versus conference champions equation is now moving unfavorably for the Irish.