Despite an 0-2 start to the season, Notre Dame football has steadied itself from that initial wobble and is now on a collision course with the College Football Playoff. Notre Dame passed its final test on paper on Saturday with flying colors, blowing out No. 22 Pittsburgh 37-15 on the road in a game it was never threatened in.

There's no question that this was a massive game for Notre Dame, who has zero margin for error if it wants to make the CFP and try to make a run to another championship game. This was a big game on paper for the Panthers as well, though head coach Pat Narduzzi didn't necessarily think so.

Before the game, Narduzzi made headlines when he said that this game was not a must-win for Pitt since it is not a conference game, and that he didn't care if his team lost 110-10. Freeman clearly didn't take too kindly to that, and he stiffed Narduzzi with a quick handshake at the end of the contest.

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After the game, Freeman was his usual professional self when asked about the handshake. However, his expression gave away more than his words.

“I wanted to go celebrate,” Freeman said with a smirk, according to Pete Sampson of The Athletic. “To each their own, you know what I mean? I don’t ever comment on another program, but also I don’t have time to think about that. Like if they call the timeout, all right guys, let’s get them stopped, right?”

From the jump on Saturday, Notre Dame was the better team by far against a ranked Pittsburgh team in a rowdy environment after College Gameday made the trip up to Acrisure Field. The Irish got on the board early with the latest highlight-worthy Jeremiyah Love touchdown run followed by a pick-six to make it 14-0, and they never looked back.

Now, with the No. 9 ranking in the latest CFP rankings, and one that will likely be higher on Tuesday night, Notre Dame is seemingly just two wins away from another berth in the field. All that stands in the way is a home game against Syracuse and a road trip to Stanford, and Freeman and company will be ready to compete for a title.