Notre Dame's College Football Playoff Odds Soar After Beating Louisville

ESPN FPI was very impressed with Notre Dame's win over Louisville

Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love (4) celebrates scoring a touchdown during a NCAA college football game between Notre Dame and Louisville at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in South Bend. / MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Notre Dame football picked up a huge win over Louisville on Saturday, beating the Cardinals 31-24 and moving to 4-1 on the season. It had large spells of offensive struggles for Notre Dame but was a game that saw Notre Dame lead for 49:59 of the 60-minute contest.

Those numbers must have spoken loudly to ESPN's Football Power Index because Notre Dame saw a rise in its ranking and a significant rise in its College Football Playoff chances according to the formula.

ESPN FPI Moves Notre Dame Up Two Spots

Following its win over Louisville, ESPN FPI moved Notre Dame up two spots to number seven in its rankings for the 2024 season. The Irish passed Miami (fell three spots) and Penn State (stayed at number eight) after college football's Week 5.

Here is the entire top 25 of the ESPN FPI rankings:

1. Texas
2. Alabama
3. Ohio State
4. Georgia
5. Tennessee
6. Ole Miss
7. Notre Dame
8. Penn State
9. Oregon
10. Miami
11. USC
12. Louisville
13. Clemson
14. Missouri
15. LSU
16. Indiana
17. Oklahoma
18. Texas A&M
19. SMU
20. Kansas State
21. Boise State
22. Iowa State
23. Kentucky
24. Iowa
25. South Carolina

ESPN FPI Projects Notre Dame's Remainder of Season

Notre Dame celebrates winning a NCAA college football game 31-24 against Louisville at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in South Bend. / MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Here are Notre Dame's chances at winning each of the remaining seven games according to ESPN FPI along with what those chances were a week ago, pre-Louisville. As you'll see, Notre Dame's chances of making the College Football Playoff are very much alive as they saw an increase from a week ago.

Notre Dame vs. Stanford: 95.3% (+0.1)
Notre Dame vs. Georgia Tech: 83.6% (+1.3)
Notre Dame vs. Navy: 92.5% (-2.2)
Notre Dame vs. Florida State: 93.3% (+2.1)
Notre Dame vs. Virginia: 92.7% (+0.2)
Notre Dame vs. Army: 89.5% (-2.1)
Notre Dame at USC: 51.1% (-2.0)

Notre Dame Season Projections from ESPN FPI:

To Win-Out This Regular Season: 31.0% (up 9.1% from Sept. 22)

Make College Football Playoff: 46.4% (up 9.5%)*

Make National Championship Game: 6.2 (up 0.7%)

Win National Championship: 2.8% (down 1.6%)

*-Notre Dame's 46.4% chance to make the College Football Playoff are the ninth best of any team nationally according to ESPN FPI.

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