After a 10-game winning streak to end the regular season couldn’t get Notre Dame into last year’s College Football Playoff, the fourth-ranked Fighting Irish have vowed to leave no doubt about their worthiness this time.

Unlike previous seasons in the Fickell era, Wisconsin has no "preseason" game in Week 1, as the skipper described it. The Badgers must immediately line up against No. 4 Notre Dame, one of the trendiest national title picks in the country.

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Notre Dame running back Aneyas Williams spent his first two college seasons waiting for a chance to prove himself. Then last winter, he had right elbow surgery and considered transferring.