Warde Manuel, the new CFP selection committee chair, broke down Notre Dame’s placement in the new CFP rankings shortly after they were revealed on Tuesday night.

Notre Dame clocked in at No. 10 in the initial CFP rankings. Manuel spoke about the Fighting Irish during his weekly teleconference appearance.

He acknowledged Notre Dame’s poor performance in a loss back to Northern Illinois back in Week 2, but also pointed to how Marcus Freeman’s team has responded in recent weeks.

“Well, the logic was they opened the season with a great win at Texas A&M, also against No. 22 Louisville,” Manuel said. “Their performance against a Navy team that was ranked at the time — didn’t have a loss and going to Navy and winning in a dominant fashion we felt overcame what was a troubling loss to Northern Illinois.

“But they’ve won six straight games since that loss, and Riley Leonard is really coming on into this offense, not only passing but actually running. A very good runner.”

Notre Dame’s recent wins over Navy and Louisville — along with its Week 1 victory over Texas A&M — have certainly helped to rebuild this team’s résumé. However, there is more work to be done if the Fighting Irish want to get back into the CFP.

In addition to those key wins and Leonard’s improvement over the course of the season, Manuel also cited Notre Dame’s strong defense. The Irish currently rank 6th nationally in yards-per-play allowed (4.48)

Notre Dame will be back in action this weekend against Florida State.