The UHND Opponent Poll returns for a second season. Here is our first poll of the season.
2009 UHND Opponent Poll |
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| Opponent | 2008 Record | Next | Comments | ||
| 1. |  |
#4 Southern Cal Trojans |
12-1 | vs. San Jose State (9/5) | Even with USC replacing most of their defense and starting a true freshman at QB in Matt Barkley, USC is by far the toughest opponent for Notre Dame in 2009. |
| 2. |  |
Michigan State Spartans |
9-4 | vs. Montana State (9/5) | Michigan State is a dark horse contender in the Big 10 in 2009. Mike Dantonio has Michigan State headed in the right direction, but the Spartans will miss Javon Ringer early in the season |
| 3. |  |
Pitt Panthers |
9-4 | vs. Youngstown State (9/5) | Pitt will miss LeSean McCoy greatly in 2009, but Dave Wannstedt’s solid recruiting has Pitt in a position for a nice year again this year. |
| 4. |  |
Nevada Wolf Pack |
7-6 | @ #23 Notre Dame (9/5) | A lot of people are overlooking Nevada, but the Wolf Pack have a potent offense that can put up a lot of points on a lot of defenses. |
| 5. |  |
Stanford Cardinal |
5-7 | @ Washington State (9/5) | I’m still not buying into all of the hype of Harbaugh, but I think Stanford will be a little better than they were a year ago. |
| 6. |  |
Boston College Eagles |
9-5 | vs. Northeastern (9/5) | Boston College will be breaking in a new quarterback and coach in 2008, but new head coach Frank Spaziani is a very familiar face for BC. |
| 7. |  |
Michigan Wolverines |
3-9 | vs. Western Michigan (9/5) | There’s a lot of turmoil in Ann Arbor right now. Michigan can’t be worse than they were a year ago, but quarterback issues are really going to hamper Michigan in 2009. |
| 8. |  |
Navy Midshipmen |
8-5 | @ #6 Ohio State (9/5) | Navy won’t beat Ohio State this weekend, but they’ll give them a tough game and will have a solid season. |
| 9. |  |
UConn Huskies |
8-5 | @ Ohio (9/5) | UConn lost their QB and RB. Former Notre Dame QB Zach Frazer will be the starting QB for UConn this year. |
| 10. |  |
Washington Huskies |
0-12 | vs. #11 LSU (9/5) | As long as Jake Locker is healthy this season, Washington will at least have a chance each week this season after going winless last year. |
| 11. |  |
Purdue Boilermakers |
4-8 | vs. Toledo (9/5) | Purdue is in rebuilding year this year with a new head coach. That is not the recipe for a good season. |
| 12. |  |
Washington State Cougars |
2-11 | vs. Stanford (9/5) | The Cougars are looking like the weakest team on the Notre Dame schedule to start the season. |
I would just like to see what I seen against nevada, don’t beat yourself with stupid mistakes, beat the teams you are supposed to beat and have fun doing it. The first drive I watched and waited for ND to fumble or get intercepted or some how shoot them selves in the foot it comes from years of training from past teams and a hard habit to break. I am still a little worried about there defense and there ability to stop the run up the middle but they have a stopper in Manti Teo, wow what a player.
I think this should be a great season for the Irish. Does anyone ever notice that since Charlie Weis has been our head coach we never run out of the tunnell together. It’s always a few players at a time. I’ve been to many Notre Dame games and watching the team come out as a team was one of the greatest football moments..
Yep, well said.
I look at 5 thru 9 as potentially interchangeable. What we need to see is two things.
1. First and foremost –IRISH……Take care of business. If the team does that, let the chips fall where they may.
2. Let’s see how these teams end up in national polls. While the bottom 3 should truly suck, what if 1 thru 9 on this list play respectably with a USC, MSU, and even Standford being ranked at the end of the season. What is UConn and BC surprise everyone? What if Michigan posts a 7-5 season with an upset of OSU? What is Nevada beats a Pac-10 team? Let’s not forget last year that the Pac-10 had a very poor record against the Mountain West, a non-BCS conference.
ND winning al it’s games with or without a BCS Championship game would be great. Let’s take em one at a time.
This is a tough schedule no matter what the pundits say. Certain teams always find a way to raise above the forecasters dismal predictions. I still like our chances, but it will not be a walk in the park, as some say.
Hooray! I agree that Michigan can’t be worse than they were last year; but I wouldn’t rule out the possibility that they could be just as awful.