Four years ago, Notre Dame was 4-8. Two years ago, when they squared off against Clemson in the Cotton Bowl, they got scorched 30-3. But even as the Fighting Irish have struggled lately, head coach Brian Kelly and his staff have quietly been putting the pieces in place to compete with the country's top programs -- and on Saturday, they did just that, defeating #1 ranked Clemson 47-40 in double OT. The Athletic's Pete Sampson joins us to break down what went right for Notre Dame in the game, what to expect in a likely December rematch, and what the team's first victory over a #1 ranked team in 27 years signals for the program.

Follow Pete Sampson's Notre Dame coverage:

https://theathletic.com/author/pete-sampson/?source=theleadpodcast

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.