Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2012 Notre Dame Football Preview
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BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2017 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 21 TOP FIVE GAMES Second-year head coach Kirby Smart will bring Georgia — Notre Dame's first regular-season meeting with an SEC team in 12 years — to South Bend for its first road game north of the Mason-Dixon line in more than 50 years. PHOTO COURTESY GEORGIA Last year, the opener at Texas was in this spot even though the Longhorns had been crushed 38‑3 at Notre Dame the year prior. That was because it would be a cru‑ sade for Texas, which was 2‑9 all time versus Notre Dame, including 0‑4 in Austin. The 50‑47 double‑overtime loss by the Irish instantly established a negative tone in 2016 that never subsided. Likewise, this visit by the Bulldogs — their first north of the Mason‑Dixon line in more than 50 years — the second week of the season is the 2017 bellwether. A win under the lights against a top‑15 preseason pick and popular choice to capture the SEC East rinses out a lot of residue from 2016. A defeat, though, is bound to recharge a negative energy and reinforce Notre Dame's inability to "win a game that matters." Second‑year Georgia head coach Kirby Smart needs this win after an uninspiring 8‑5 debut, but the urgency at Notre Dame is even more intense. This fifth spot is a coin flip between the road game at North Carolina (Oct. 7) to begin the month or the encounter with the Wolfpack to end it. The Tar Heels lost a bevy of their top playmakers — but the game is on the road, where nothing has come easy for the Irish. Conversely, NC State is making its first trip ever to Notre Dame with a veteran quarterback in Ryan Finley, 16 returning starters (among the most in the Football Bowl Sub‑ division) and possibly the best defense on the 2017 schedule. Plus, the Irish will be coming off the emotion‑laden USC game, while the Wolfpack have a bye the previous week. Notre Dame lost 10‑3 at NC State last year while playing in Hurricane Matthew. A different hurricane could be brew‑ ing with a loss at home. 5. North Carolina State (Oct. 28) Following their 30‑27 loss at Notre Dame last season, first‑year head coach Mark Richt's Hurricanes put it all together to win their final five games and finish 9‑4 and No. 20 in the Associated Press poll. Miami has lost four straight to the Irish dating back to 1990, so the scene could be simi‑ lar to the one at Texas last year. Miami's front seven on defense is formidable, and these are the type of road trips where Notre Dame has faltered with a 3‑10 record in its last 13 outings to an opponent's actual home field. Notre Dame returns to Hard Rock Stadium for the first time since the 42‑14 loss to Alabama in the national title showdown in January 2013. Back then it was known as Sun Life Stadium. 4. At Miami (Fla.) (Nov. 11) Regardless of the record, the Trojans — who finished 2016 with nine straight wins and a No. 3 ranking — always will be Notre Dame's archrival. If the Irish are unbeaten or have only one loss heading into this contest, and if there is a chance to remain in the College Football Playoff conversa‑ tion for the third time in six years when entering the month of November, the stakes rise significantly. Notre Dame did a pretty good job of containing USC quarterback and Heisman Trophy front‑runner Sam Dar‑ nold during last year's 45‑27 loss, where three of the Trojan touchdowns came on special teams or defense. A third straight victory at home against USC at night would bolster Kelly's Notre Dame résumé, which includes a 4‑3 current edge in this series. 3. USC (Oct. 21) The Cardinal has become the arch nemesis to the Irish in ways beyond posting a 6‑2 record against them since 2009. It has become like that proverbial irritating cousin, brother or friend you grew up with about whom your parents say, "Why can't you be like him?" In Brian Kelly's seven seasons, Notre Dame is 59‑31 (.656) with no major bowl win, one top‑10 finish and two 10‑win seasons. Stanford, with its ultra‑elite academic background but far less renowned football tradition, is 76‑18 (.809), has five top‑10 finishes and six 10‑win seasons — with three 12‑victory campaigns and two more with 11. Plain and simple, this trend has to reverse, otherwise any conversation about Notre Dame "standards" fall hollow. In this regular‑season finale that also could have significant postseason implications, the Irish will attempt to end a four‑ game losing streak at Stanford. The only other longer losing streaks since 1964 at one venue were seven straight at USC from 1970‑82 and five in a row at Miami from 1981‑89. 2. At Stanford (Nov. 25) 1. Georgia (Sept. 9)