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Post being replied to

Re: 1988-1989 Strength of Schedule... by fight_me_im_irish

It's not an apt comparison to this year's team. It's simply apples and oranges.

You won't ever see a team (ND or otherwise) succeed against that kind of schedule ever again. There was a time when the top teams truly stood apart (UCLA men's basketball, ND football). All the top talent (which was scarce) rose to the top few teams, to the point where even a "murderer's row" schedule like 1989 was difficult, but manageable for a program like ND (still damned impressive though, and I wouldn't argue with you if you still wanted to call that the "standard-bearer").

The point, though, is that we shouldn't get too hung up in trying to compare the 2018 team to team's past, even if we do win it all.

Today there is too much parity on college sports for something like 1988-89 ND to ever happen again, because there is too great a pool of talent of kids out there. The population and resources are simply higher. More kids playing sports, better coaching, better nutrition and strength programs to close the gap between normal kids and "natural athletes." 2018 Alabama couldn't survive a schedule like '89 ND, and it's not because 2018 Alabama isn't a great team. The game has changed. Make no mistake, 'Bama has been dominant, but they would never get away with a schedule like the ND schedules of old. There is simply too much parity in today's game.

If you want a glimpse into the past, take women's basketball today. That too will change as the women's game gets more developed and more girls are encouraged to play sports.