Notre Dame on 'revenge tour' after '25 CFP snub, says CB Moore - ESPN

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore said the Irish are on a «revenge tour» after being excluded from the College Football Playoff last fall, and players aren't shying away from talking about the importance of their Nov. 7 home game against Miami as part of it.

Moore said last year's 27-24 season-opening loss to Miami used to keep him awake at night, but so did the Week 3 loss to Texas A&M — an 0-2 start that ultimately kept the Irish out of the CFP.

«We're on a revenge tour now,» Moore said. «We got to get back. We got to make it right from last year.»

Quarterback CJ Carr, who is entering his second season as the full-time starter, conceded it's «impossible» not to think about facing the Canes at home this year.

«Watching that tape, it was probably the worst first half of football our offense played all year, and to be in that game in the end and the second half we put together was special,» he said. «It's hard to watch.… There was some resilience shown in that game that's going to help us this year. We're excited for them to come into town and see what this team's got.»

When told of his players' candor during an interview in his office on Tuesday morning, coach Marcus Freeman smirked.

«We spend too much time daydreaming about Miami, we're gonna lose to Wisconsin,» he said of Notre Dame's Sept. 6 season opener. «You gotta focus on the task right at hand. That's no different than saying, can we go back to the national championship? If we want to focus on the national championship, we're going to lose the opportunity we have right here. It's my job to make sure I'm directing the focus where it needs to be. That's an everyday message, an everyday reminder to struggle. Struggle has to be hard mentally and