Notre Dame (8-3) has won four in a row and eight of nine, but if they're to keep the hot streak going, they're going to have to do it against perhaps the toughest team on their 2011 schedule. Stanford (10-1) is coming off a narrow 31-28 defeat of rival California last weekend, which followed a disappointing loss to Oregon the week prior. That loss likely knocked Stanford out of the national title picture, but this is still an important game to Stanford for bowl positioning. The same is true for Notre Dame.
Both teams have been good on the offensive side of the ball this year, and it's certainly within Notre Dame's capabilities to keep up with Stanford on the scoreboard.
And as One Foot Down notes, there is a bit of history attached to this particular meeting:
Stanford has been ranked in four meetings with the Irish, including last year, while Notre Dame has been ranked coming into the game against the Cardinal on 13 occasions.
Saturday's matchup will be the first ever meeting between two ranked Notre Dame and Stanford teams.
Game date, time: 8:12 p.m. ET, Saturday, Nov. 26
Location: Stanford Stadium, Stanford, CA
TV channel: ABC
Spread: Stanford favored by seven points
Series history: Notre Dame leads, 17-8
For further reading, news, discussion and more, visit Notre Dame blog One Foot Down and Stanford blog Rule Of Tree. Here’s the complete Week 13 college football TV schedule, and stay tuned to SB Nation’s college football news hub for more.