By Ben Ford
bford@etruth.com
NOTRE DAME -- Notre Dame's road to a Bowl Championship Series game is filled with potential potholes, and the Irish haven't exactly been adept at steering away from trouble this season.
But each week, they're finding less traffic in front of them.
Notre Dame moved up one spot to 23rd in the BCS rankings after its 40-14 victory over Washington State Saturday night and has four more games to prove to voters and computers that it belongs in one of the marquee bowl games. The Irish are eligible to be chosen for a BCS game if they finish in the top 14 of the final standings and are an automatic selection if they're in the top eight.
It'll likely take a 4-0 finish to get to the BCS, which is why Notre Dame isn't paying much attention to what's going on above them in the rankings.
"We can't worry about what everyone else is doing, because they're going to knock each other off," coach Charlie Weis said Sunday night. "That's the way it happens every year. If you just do what you're supposed to do, I think at the end of the day, things will work out."
Tricky games remain for nearly every team standing between the Irish and the top 14 in the BCS standings, but Notre Dame's schedule might be trickier than most. The remaining Irish opponents have a combined record of 22-11, giving Notre Dame the 17th-toughest schedule in the country from here on out.
It starts Saturday at home against Navy's triple-option offense and improved defense, then the Irish, who moved up to 19th in this week's Associated Press poll, go back on the road to face No. 14 Pittsburgh. Notre Dame closes with a home game against Connecticut and a road date with Stanford.
No wonder Weis wants his team to keep its eyes on the road and not what's going on nearby.
"You keep on winning and teams ahead of you keep on losing, and you're going to keep moving up," Weis said. "That's just the facts."
The facts show the Irish had their best defensive game since the season-opening shutout of Nevada Saturday night, though Washington State is the worst the they'll face all year. The Irish limited the Cougars to 102 yards rushing, 104 passing and didn't give up an "explosive" play in the passing game -- a pass of 20 or more yards.
"When's the last time we've been able to say that?" Weis asked. (The answer is 11 games ago, against Boston College last season.)
Weis' optimistic mood about his team's BCS chances carried over to the weekly injury report, which contained a few significant names. Backup quarterback Dayne Crist, who left Saturday's game in the fourth quarter with a knee injury, will get an MRI today, but the injury might not be as serious as first believed.
"We're keeping our fingers crossed on that one, because when he got tested today, the knee was a lot more stable than we thought it would be," Weis said.
Starting offensive lineman Trevor Robinson has a low ankle sprain, which will cause him to miss practice time this week and maybe the Navy game. Robinson had a boot on his foot and was walking with crutches Sunday night.
Still, "a low ankle sprain's a lot better than a high ankle sprain," Weis said.
Defensive lineman Kapron Lewis-Moore (ankle) should play Saturday, and receiver Michael Floyd could also return from a broken collarbone if the results of a CAT scan he's having today are favorable.