Ohio State vs. Notre Dame: Odds, predictions, props and best bets
This weekend brings college football fans a highly anticipated matchup between two top 10 teams. 6-seed Ohio State University— helmed by junior quarterback Kyle McCord — heads to Indiana to face 9-seed Notre Dame and starting quarterback Sam Hartman. The last time Notre Dame beat Ohio State was in 1936. It’s a game of high hopes for Notre Dame, looking to break the streak while Ohio State and Kyle McCord look to uphold the school’s decades-long dominance overthe Fighting Irish.
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As mentioned above, it’s been nearly 90 years since Notre Dame has defeated Ohio State. Sportsbooks have the odds fairly close for this game, though, so it could be time for the Fighting Irish to end the drought.
Ohio State is hot off three decisive wins:
- Western Kentucky: 63-10
- Youngstown State: 35-7
- Indiana: 23-3
A dominant team to be sure, but Notre Dame has a slew of impressive victories under its belt, too:
- Central Michigan: 41-17
- NC State: 45-24
- TN State: 56-3
- Navy: 42-3
This meetup should prove one of the first real challenges for two well-coached college football teams.
Last week, OSU obliterated Western Kentucky in a 53-point blowout. Quarterback Kyle McCord racked up 318 passing yards in 19 of 23 successful pass attempts. Three of those passes resulted in touchdowns. Ohio State’s running corps pulled their weight too. TreVeyon Henderson carried the ball 13 times for 88 yards and two touchdowns while DeaMonte Trayanum nabbed 5 carries for 56 yards and a touchdown.
All signs point to a strong and capable Ohio State team taking the field in Indiana this weekend. However, last week’s win was against a struggling defense. Notre Dame has strength on both sides of the field, and they could temper Ohio State’s offensive explosiveness.
This year looks promising for the Fighting Irish. Veteran quarterback Sam Hartman logged 330 passing yards for 3 touchdowns in last week’s win against the Central Michigan Chippewas. Running back Audric Estime ran for 176 yards across 20 carries, scoring a single touchdown.
If Notre Dame hopes to end its losing streak against the Buckeyes, it’ll come down to defense. If Notre Dame can stifle Ohio’s explosive offense, they could find themselves ending the drought.
We like the under this week. Take a look at the last few games either team has played. They’re mostly mismatches. Blowouts galore. But this week, two titans meet and we expect the defenses to be fired up, ready to squash any scoring hopes early.
BetMGM offers odds of -110 on this bet, so it’s a solid value.
If you subscribe to the “life’s too short to bet the under” ideology, then spring for the Ohio State moneyline. There’s less value at -155, but the team is tough to stop, even for a capable Notre Dame defense.
Marvin Harrison Jr. has proven to be a favorite target for Buckeye’s quarterback Kyle McCord. Considering Notre Dame’s defensive chops, we expect McCord to be under pressure. Look for him to throw the ball to Harrison whenever he gets a chance.
At +500, the payout here is good, but it’s risky, so we recommend only betting half a unit on it.
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