Honestly, if you look at the notre dame football schedule 2023, it feels like a fever dream in hindsight. You had the high of a quarterback savior arriving from the transfer portal, a literal trip across the Atlantic Ocean to start the year, and then a series of prime-time heartbreaks that basically redefined the term "growing pains" for Marcus Freeman’s second season.
It was a rollercoaster. Pure and simple.
The Irish finished 10-3, which looks great on a resume, but the path there was anything but smooth. We’re talking about a team that looked like a national title contender in August, a confused mess in October, and a dominant force by the time the Sun Bowl rolled around in December.
The Passport Era: Starting in Dublin
Most teams start their season with a sleepy home game against a directional school. Not the 2023 Irish. They packed their bags for Dublin, Ireland, to face Navy in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic.
It was the debut of Sam Hartman. You remember the hype. The "Wake Forest legend" with the beard and the golden arm. He didn’t disappoint, throwing for 251 yards and four touchdowns. Notre Dame crushed Navy 42-3. It felt like the start of something legendary.
Then came the "rest" of the early slate.
- Tennessee State (W 56-3)
- NC State (W 45-24)
- Central Michigan (W 41-17)
By mid-September, the Irish were sitting at 4-0 and ranked in the Top 10. The offense was humming, Audric Estimé was running through people like they were made of paper, and the vibes in South Bend were immaculate. But then, the schedule got real. Fast.
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Ten Men on the Field: The Ohio State Heartbreaker
If you want to talk about the notre dame football schedule 2023, you have to talk about September 23rd. The Buckeyes came to town. College GameDay was there. The stadium was a sea of green.
It was a defensive masterclass for 59 minutes and 59 seconds. Notre Dame led 14-10. Then, the disaster. Ohio State’s Chip Trayanum burrowed into the end zone on the final play of the game. The image of Notre Dame only having ten men on the field for that final play is still burned into the retinas of every fan.
Losing 17-14 like that? It changes a team.
The Mid-Season Identity Crisis
The week after the Ohio State loss, the Irish had to travel to Duke. They escaped with a 21-14 win thanks to a late Sam Hartman scramble, but the cracks were showing. The passing game was getting stagnant. The offensive line was struggling with exotic blitzes.
Then came the Louisville disaster.
Going into Kentucky and losing 33-20 to the Cardinals wasn't in the script. The Irish turned the ball over five times. Five. You can’t win games like that, especially when the opposing crowd is sensing blood in the water. People started questioning everything: Gerad Parker’s play-calling, Freeman’s game management, the whole deal.
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The USC Redemption
Fortunately, the notre dame football schedule 2023 provided an immediate opportunity for revenge. Caleb Williams and the USC Trojans came to South Bend.
The Irish defense absolutely suffocated the reigning Heisman winner. They intercepted him three times. Xavier Watts became a household name that night, snagging two picks and returning a fumble for a score. Winning 48-20 against your biggest rival is a hell of a way to stop a slide.
Finishing Strong and the Sun Bowl Statement
After a weird loss to Clemson (31-23) where the Irish just couldn't get out of their own way early, the team actually found its footing. They hammered Wake Forest and Stanford to close out the regular season, but the real surprise was how they handled the bowl game.
A lot of people expected the Sun Bowl against Oregon State to be a bore. Hartman opted out to prepare for the NFL. Estimé sat out. It was the Steve Angeli show.
And Angeli was great.
Notre Dame won 40-8. It wasn't just a win; it was a statement that the culture Freeman was building could survive even when the "stars" weren't on the field. They finished 10-3 and ranked No. 14 in the final AP Poll.
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2023 Schedule and Results At A Glance
- Aug 26: vs Navy (Dublin) — W 42-3
- Sep 2: Tennessee State — W 56-3
- Sep 9: at NC State — W 45-24
- Sep 16: Central Michigan — W 41-17
- Sep 23: Ohio State — L 14-17
- Sep 30: at Duke — W 21-14
- Oct 7: at Louisville — L 20-33
- Oct 14: USC — W 48-20
- Oct 28: Pitt — W 58-7
- Nov 4: at Clemson — L 23-31
- Nov 18: Wake Forest — W 45-7
- Nov 25: at Stanford — W 56-23
- Dec 29: vs Oregon State (Sun Bowl) — W 40-8
Why 2023 Still Matters for the Program
Looking back, the notre dame football schedule 2023 was the ultimate litmus test. It proved that Marcus Freeman could recruit at an elite level and keep a locker room together even after devastating losses. It also highlighted the desperate need for a more dynamic offensive philosophy, which eventually led to the hiring of Mike Denbrock from LSU.
If you’re analyzing this season, don't just look at the 10-3 record. Look at the development of young guys like Jeremiyah Love and Jaden Greathouse. Look at how the defense, under Al Golden, became one of the top units in the country (7th in points allowed).
The 2023 season was the bridge. It was the year the Irish moved away from the Brian Kelly era's "ceiling" and started figuring out how to compete with the big dogs, even if they tripped over their own feet a few times along the way.
To truly understand where the program is headed, take a moment to re-watch the USC game from that year. It’s the blueprint for what Notre Dame wants to be: physical, opportunistic, and Loud.
Study the defensive rotations Al Golden used during that mid-October stretch to see how the Irish began neutralizing modern spread offenses. Review the rushing statistics of Audric Estimé, who finished with 1,341 yards and 18 touchdowns, to appreciate the sheer physicality that remains the team's core identity.