Irish rising, Part Deux

And so ... let the backlash begin.

You know. The Oh, Here We Go, More Notre Dame Hype backlash.

The first College Football Playoff poll is out, and there were some mild surprises, the least mild among  them that the Irish -- 4-8 a year ago, 7-1 with essentially the same bunch of gomers now -- came in at No. 3. That was a surprise. But only a kinda-sorta surprise.

Allow me to explain.

Allow me to explain, once again, that there is such a thing as an eye test, and this Notre Dame team, unlike so many in the past, passes it. It is a team, as has been noted, that is not just squeaking by the usual run of Pitts and Boston Colleges and Armys. It is a team that is absolutely crushing everyone -- beating them up physically, on both of sides of the football, the way a Notre Dame team hasn't since it last won a national title 28 years ago.

The Irish beat a better-than-decent North Carolina State team by three touchdowns last Saturday, a week after beating an OK-but-not-great USC team by 28. They have beaten everyone they have played by at least 20 points, except for a one-point loss to Georgia -- and Georgia, correctly, came in at No. 1 in the first CFP poll, bumping Alabama to No. 2 mainly because Alabama hasn't played anyone who's anyone.

And so it would be Georgia, Alabama, Notre Dame and Clemson in the playoff if it began today, and you've got to like ND's chances to stay in the top four. Unlike the rest of the top four, it has no conference championship game to play (and risk losing). All it has left are a decent Wake Forest team, a decent Navy team, a decent Stanford team, and a roadie against an unbeaten Miami team.

It could lose at least one of those, particularly the Miami game. But three decents and a better than decent (Miami) is not exactly a nightmare gantlet, especially for a team that's been chewing up and spitting out decents all season. And so the Blob is starting to entertain the heresy that Notre Dame is  going to win out.

It could be wrong, of course. It has frequently been wrong about Notre Dame. But somehow it feels different time.

Remember those words.