What happened: Notre Dame is 2-0 and sits at No. 3 in both the AP and Coaches polls. ESPN's Football Power Index agrees, ranking the Irish No. 3 nationally behind Ohio State and Texas, with the metric's top five unchanged from last week aside from reordering among Marcus Freeman's squad and its peers.

Why it matters: A top-five FPI grade backs up the human-poll ranking and keeps Notre Dame in the thick of CFP projections two weeks into the season. The Irish are now heavy favorites in their next outing, a sign oddsmakers see no immediate threat to that positioning.

What to watch: Notre Dame hosts Michigan State Saturday evening in South Bend.