Well, if the Miami Hurricanes were to listen to the talking heads on the ESPN College GameDay panel, they shouldn't bother showing up against Notre Dame. Luckily, the game will still be played, and despite four of the five members on the panel picking the Irish, none of them will be able to help once we reach kickoff.
Pat McAfee, Nick Saban, Kirk Herbstreit and guest picker Jason Sudeikis (a.k.a. Ted Lasso) all chose Notre Dame to win this Week 10 showdown. Desmond Howard, a Miami resident and someone who's always spoken up for the Hurricanes, kept it real and picked Miami despite the boos of the overflow crowd outside of Notre Dame Stadium.
"You walk around, you can feel how special this place really is."@PatMcAfeeShow likes Notre Dame to take down No. 1 Miami and move one step closer to the College Football Playoff‼️ pic.twitter.com/IIP1UTfHTv
— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) November 7, 2026
"If you've never been to this campus, I'd recommend it to anybody. You walk around, you can feel how special this place is. It's different. It feels different," McAfee said. "The feeling around the campus right now . . .must win, back against the wall . . . Joe Montana is here . . .. I'll take the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. They punch their tickets to the College Football Playoff today."
As usual, when anyone describes Notre Dame, it's always these imaginary intangibles that come into play. Not the team on the field, which is very formidable, but all the "Touchdown Jesus" stuff, the random "echos", and the Four Horsemen, none of whom have taken a snap in more than 100 years. And believe me, if Harry Stuhldreher, Don Miller, Jim Crowley, and Elmer Layden wanted to suit up now, Ahmad Moten Sr. would flatten them.
And what's with the choice of Sudeikis? Listen, I love 'Ted Lasso' and Sudeikis seems like a genuine, great guy, so this isn't personal towards him. But they interviewed Jerome Bettis AND Joe Montana, but didn't think about having either of those Hall of Fame players on the desk making the pick?
Miami and Notre Dame will finally settle it on the field
The best teams have faced some level of adversity during their seasons. It's bound to happen. Malachi Toney didn't travel and won't be playing against Notre Dame. That stinks. It stinks for the Hurricanes, and it stinks for college football, and that best offensive weapon in the sport isn't playing in the big game. But to think that Miami can't overcome this is an insult to Mario Cristobal, the players, and the coaching staff.
Every week it's about going 1-0 and getting better. Miami had a lot to work on after last week's close call against North Carolina. The work that the Hurricanes put into practice this week will show itself on the field. Players will step up on both sides of the ball and make plays when their number is called. Someone new will emerge for the Hurricanes on offense, and Darian Mensah will show why he was the player that Miami targeted in the transfer portal this offseason.
There will be no excuses from Cristobal or any player on the team. Nothing about how the history of the stadium or the "echos" distracted the Hurricanes. They will be focused on executing and playing winning football. That's the Miami way.
Add us as a preferred source on Google