Notre Dame vs. Penn State: What a CFP Showdown Could Look Like

Notre Dame's projected opponent in initial College Football Playoff rankings is a favorable one

Sept 8, 2007; University Park, PA, USA; The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team huddles before a play against the Penn State Nittany Lions in the second quarter at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Notre Dame 31-10. / James Lang-Imagn Images

Tuesday night saw the initial release of the College Football Playoff rankings for 2024 as the nation sat and watched.

For Notre Dame it meant a No. 10 overall ranking which was right in the middle of where myself and Mason Plummer projected going into the night.

With that projection comes the makeshift College Football Playoff bracket based off the rankings which would mean a favorable matchup for Notre Dame in the First Round.

A Look at Potential Opponent Penn State

Penn State students sing along to a song during a White Out football game against Iowa Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, in State College, Pa. The Nittany Lions shut out the Hawkeyes, 31-0. / Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK

Notre Dame's No. 10 ranking means that if these rankings were used in the actual College Football Playoff that the Fighting Irish would go on the road to play No. 7. That happens to be an old Notre Dame rival, Penn State.

Penn State checked in at No. 6 overall in the rankings despite not having a win against a ranked opponent to its name. It beat Illinois who was ranked at the time of the game in early October, but the Illini have mustered a 2-3 run since starting the season 4-0. With the way the first four seeds go to conference champions, Penn State would be awarded the No. 7 seed in the bracket in this scenario.

With Washington, Purdue, Minnesota, and Maryland left to play it is almost certain Penn State will end the regular season without having beat a ranked opponent.

Why Penn State Matchup is Extremely Favorable for Notre Dame

Oct 26, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish running back Jeremiyah Love (4) celebrates a rushing a touchdown with teammates during the first half against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at MetLife Stadium. / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Penn State is fresh off a home loss to Ohio State by a 20-13 margin. It seems close based off that but this was a game that leaned very heavily in favor of the Buckeyes.

A Will Howard interception was returned for a touchdown early by Penn State but the entire afternoon the Nittany Lions were unable to score an offensive touchdown. Yes, Ohio State's defense is loaded but so is Notre Dame's.

Penn State quarterback Drew Allar threw for 146 yards on 20 pass attempts while throwing one interception himself. Notre Dame has one of the nation's best defenses overall but nowhere is it stronger than in the secondary.

Penn State's defense has had a common theme in its biggest games in recent years.

It happened Saturday against Ohio State, last season against Michigan, and just so happens to be the strength of Notre Dame's offense.

Getting pounded.

Ohio State ran the ball 40 times in its victory at Penn State on Saturday, including the final possession when the Buckeyes ran the ball 10-straight plays to bleed the final 5:13 off the clock. That brought back memories of Michigan running the ball 46 times to attempting just eight passes in Happy Valley a year ago when the Wolverines recorded one of their biggest regular season wins in years.

I don't care about Penn State's white-out at Beaver Stadium and don't care about what the weather in Pennsylvania may bring in late-December. You could play this game in front of a white-out crowd on the moon for all I care, and I would love how it plays to Notre Dame's strengths.

All of that swings in favor of the Fighting Irish and I haven't even mentioned yet how James Franklin is the Penn State version of Brian Kelly in big games at Notre Dame.

Notre Dame's Goal Regarding College Football Playoff

Fans stop to take photos with the College Football National Championship trophy at Meijer in Ypsilanti, Mich. on Thursday, Jan. 11, 2024. The trophy is going on a tour for fans to see presented by Dr. Pepper. / Kimberly P. Mitchell / USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY NETWORK

As fun as it is to think about Notre Dame and Penn State renewing an old rivalry for the first time in 17 years in a playoff game, history has told us that things will change in a major way from the first rankings to when the actual playoff takes place.

Notre Dame will have a tough time catching Penn State in the rankings as we've already looked at the Nittany Lions schedule and don't see much of a threat for a loss. Notre Dame does have one opponent left who was ranked in the initial CFP rankings, Army who came in at No. 25.

Notre Dame's obvious must for the rest of the regular season is to win all of its remaining games. Win and the Irish are in with a fantastic chance of hosting a playoff game.

If Notre Dame wins out it will almost certainly move up the rankings as plenty of teams ahead of it will beat up on each other. Can Notre Dame climb as high as the six-seed however?

If so, that'd mean a date with the Big 12 champion, ACC champion, or highest-rated Group of Five conference champion for a spot in the national semi-final instead of having to take on the Big Ten or SEC champion.

First thing is first, however. Take care of Florida State this week to check another box on the way to 11-1 before you start worrying about Penn State or what the eventual playoff seed for Notre Dame will be.

More From Notre Dame on Sports Illustrated

Notre Dame updates depth chart for Florida State clash

College Football Playoff Projections Overhauled After Wild Week 10

Former Heisman Trophy Winner Gives Notre Dame Massive Praise

Notre Dame's Next Opponent is Fresh Off Brutal Home Loss