Will Texas A&M’s brutal loss to South Carolina affect Notre Dame’s CFP chances? – Sports Illustrated

Texas A&M went from hero to zero one week to the next

Although Notre Dame picked up wins earlier in the season against then-ranked Louisville and Navy, arguably the Irish’s most impressive win, both in practice and perception, was a double-digit win over Texas A&M in College Station.

That win looked more impressive as each week went by as Texas A&M continued to win until Saturday night at South Carolina.

After an emotional and intense win over LSU the week before that won national praise, the Aggies were defeated by South Carolina 20-44 in a game that eventually turned ugly and out of control. Sure, that score takes some of the shine off Notre Dame’s most impressive win, but not as much as some might think when you look at the details.

The Aggies are still in the hunt for an SEC title appearance

Perceptually, this ugly loss to the Aggies hurts them and by implication Notre Dame. But not as much as many would think. Although Texas A&M now has two losses, only one of them was an SEC loss. Because of that, the Aggies are still in a position to compete for a spot in the SEC title game.

While talk of a “true national contender” will now die down regarding Texas A&M, beating them is still a great feather in Notre Dame’s cap, and their loss to South Carolina won’t drastically move the needle against Notre Dame in any major way. It will be interesting to see how the Aggies perform the rest of the way and if they can clinch a spot in the SEC title game.

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