Notre Dame should have a strong team this year, with the NFL salivating over linebacker Jaylon Smith, offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley and wideout William Fuller, among others. Brian Kelly has to break in a new quarterback in Malik Zaire, but the Fightin' Irish are a legit playoff contender.

Of course, in the playoff era every team – from Alabama to Army – is, or should be, a legit playoff contender. What they do on the field of play is the only thing that matters.

Missouri head coach Gary Pinkel says a team should be in a conference in order to be playoff-eligible. (AP) More

Then again, both Missouri coach Gary Pinkel and Clemson's Dabo Swinney recently discounted ND not on the potential strength of the team, but because the school refuses to join a conference full-time and instead remains a throwback independent. Swinney seemed most concerned that this limited their season to 12, rather than 13 games.

"They don't have independents in NFL," Pinkel noted.

"Absolutely Notre Dame needs to be in conference or play 13 games to be in," Swinney echoed.

These are intellectually lazy opinions that can't stand up to any reasonable debate considering the state of college football scheduling.

Notre Dame will again play an ambitious schedule – Texas, Georgia Tech, USC, Stanford and so on. Oh, and at Clemson on Oct. 3, which means Swinney's comments will be resurrected then. Only six games are in South Bend. Nine opponents are from Power Five Conferences and one of the others, Navy, is no one's slouch.

Because of college football's unique nature – 128 teams chasing four playoff spots – and the disparate schedules it produces, this is a sport where quality should always be more important than quantity. It should be simple.

"Conferences" are just groupings of teams in an effort to maximize television revenue and, to a lesser extent, provide scheduling security. If Notre Dame wins all 12 of its games, or even goes 11-1 under certain scenarios, it will deserve to be considered for a spot in the playoff. If the Irish don't, they won't.

A perfect season won't merit automatic inclusion, but it also doesn't merit automatic exclusion. Last year Florida State was the 13-0 defending national champion and it was only seeded third.

That was a good thing; a sign the 13-member playoff committee is more mature than the old BCS, where record was all that mattered and, via the coaches' poll, the opinions of guys such as Pinkel and Swinney actually counted.

The inaugural college football playoff was a predictable runaway success and the fact the committee's choice for the contentious fourth spot, Ohio State, went on to win the title was a bonus for the process. Under the BCS it almost certainly would've been Alabama vs. Florida State, each of whom lost in the semifinals. It showed that additional access to prove it on the field wasn't just about the potential Boise States of the world, but the Big Ten, too.

That programs have gotten the strength-of-schedule message and are booking better non-conference dates for future seasons is a massive ancillary benefit.

Still, it was just one year and the process wasn't without debate. Baylor coach Art Briles complained about brand bias and a lack of Southern representation, which may or may not be true. The difference between Ohio State, Baylor and TCU was razor thin, though, and arguing one over the other was an exercise in going in circles. Any of the three were the correct choice. The committee made a tough call and the Buckeyes made the most of it.

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