Marcus Freeman wants one thing to be clear.

No. 9 Notre Dame (7-2) is taking nothing for granted heading into Saturday afternoon's game against No. 22 Pitt (7-2) in Pittsburgh. The Fighting Irish are thinking about the Panthers and nothing else, particularly not a potential run in the College Football Playoff.

Freeman clarified his team's approach after someone he knew sent him a text message describing the matchup against Pitt as a "trap game."

"I said, ‘This is not a trap game,'" Freeman recalled. "‘This is a challenge. This is a real challenge, a great challenge. So we have to understand the challenge we have ahead of us on Saturday and use that as a reminder to prepare the right way."

Since losing its first two games of the season against Miami and Texas A&M, Notre Dame has reeled

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