Brian Kelly and the Notre Dame football team face Alabama at the Rose Bowl on Friday. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra / Getty Images)
The Notre Dame football team will face Alabama Crimson Tide at the Rose Bowl, and here are three bold predictions for the clash.
Nobody is giving the Irish a chance. Not Father Jenkins. Not Ian Book’s mother. Not George Gipp’s ghost. Nobody thinks Notre Dame has a chance to beat Alabama. Frankly, everyone is probably right. OK, maybe Book’s mom thinks the team will win, but as a big underdog, there are no high expectations for the Irish.
Looking at the confrontation, Alabama is more talented and has a proven track record of success in these situations. The Irish have not won this type of game in over 25 years and never with Brian Kelly.
Everything has to break Notre Dame’s way of scaring Alabama. Still, with a perfect game, beating Alabama seems almost impossible. Still, this is college football, and madness is expected, as the twists take place, from Stanford defeating USC as a six-point underdog in 2007, to James Madison defeating Virginia Tech as a five-score underdog in 2010.
In other words, there is a chance, but it will be necessary for some bold things to happen during a Rose Bowl that will not be played at the Rose Bowl or Pasadena. So, maybe there’s already a little bit of madness in the air?
Here are three bold predictions for the College Football Playoff semifinal against Alabama: