Notre Dame began the 2025 season with two close losses, falling 27-24 to Miami on Aug. 31 and then 41-40 to Texas A&M on Saturday. The back-to-back losses also caused the Irish to drop out of the top 10 in the latest AP Top 25 poll, now sitting at No. 24.Despite starting 0-2, Notre Dame’s ranking remains relatively high, as voters may still see potential in Marcus Freeman’s squad. However, some, like Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy, are expressing frustration over the program’s slow start."Sick season Notre Dame. Not to rub in but if they played in the Big 10 they’d still have plenty of time to make the playoff. Now not so much. 2 games in and they are dunzo," Portnoy tweeted.None of the final 10 games on Notre Dame’s 2025 schedule is considered impossible to win, but fans aren’t accustomed to seeing their team struggle against programs like Texas A&M. To strengthen their playoff case, the Irish need a statement win against Purdue next weekend.Freeman also looked determined to do so, as he struck an optimistic tone in his postgame press conference of Week 3."I can't sit here and dwell on being 0-2 as much as I need to dwell on how we find ways to improve," Freeman said (via SI). "That's what I need to dwell on is how do we get better. How do we evaluate what we're doing, why things are and aren't working and how do we attack them and get better?"So we're 0-2, lost to two good opponents. We're guaranteed 12, that's what we always say. We've got the next one coming up soon."Paul Finebaum reflects on Notre Dame's playoff potential for 2025With Saturday’s one-point loss to Texas A&M, Notre Dame has started 0-2 for the first time since 2011. It is a stark contrast to Marcus Freeman’s 14-2 season in 2024, when the school was a championship contender before falling to Ohio State 34-23 on Jan. 20.On "The Matt Barrie Show" podcast, ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum offered a grim assessment of the Fighting Irish following the Week 3 loss.“We’ve been talking for a couple of weeks now and all of our friends have whispered, ‘Keep your eyes on the Aggies,’ and they proved it," Finebaum said (via On3)."As big as that was for Texas A&M, it was equally painful and a body blow to Marcus Freeman who everyone loves and there’s so much to love there. But you can’t miss a point-after, you have to finish the job. And their path back (to the Playoff) is almost non-existent.”Notre Dame entered the season ranked No. 6 in the preseason polls.