The Notre Dame Fighting Irish will see their regular season come to an end this week when they take on the Stanford Cardinal. Notre Dame had hoped to make it into the College Football Playoff, but losses to Georgia and Miami did this team in. Stanford still has its eyes set on the PAC 12 North title and a potential rematch with USC in the PAC 12 Championship Game. If Washington beats Washington State in the Apple Cup on Saturday, then the Cardinal will get into the game by virtue of knocking off Washington in head-to-head play.
Watch this regular season Week 13 matchup live on Saturday, November 25, 2017, at 8 p.m. ET at Stanford Stadium in Stanford, California. This game will be broadcast on ABC.
College Football Opening Odds at BookMaker.eu
Notre Dame -2
Stanford +2
Over/Under 57
Odds Analysis
The Cardinal have not been good on the road this season, but have been just fine at home. Stanford is 5-0 SU and 3-2 ATS in Palo Alto this season with resounding wins over UCLA and Oregon and impressive victories over Washington and Arizona State. The Cardinal did need to hang on for a win last week against Cal though. Under has cashed in six of Stanford’s last seven games.
Notre Dame was a ball of fire for most of the year on offense, but has calmed down over the last few weeks. The Fighting Irish covered seven of their first eight games and thumped very good teams like Michigan State, USC, and North Carolina State.
Recently, things have not gone as well for the Golden Domers. Notre Dame has gone three straight weeks without covering and was trailing Navy in the second half last week.
Matchup to Watch
Two of the best running backs in the nation will take the field for this primetime game.
Give Brian Kelly credit for retooling his offense to fit his personnel and giving Josh Adams the chance to shine. Adams went on a tear in the middle of the season, breaking off a run of at least 70 yards in four straight games. He has been held down in recent weeks, but is still averaging 7.8 yards per carry on the season.
Stanford won’t have to worry about Adams in the passing game though. Over the past eight games, Adams has caught just two passes.
Notre Dame doesn’t have to worry about Bryce Love catching passes out of the backfield either. Love has caught just six passes all year and might be the only running back in the country averaging 3.5 yards less per reception than run this year.
However, the defense does have to be wary of Love’s ability on the ground. He has been held under 100 yards just once all season, by Washington State of all teams, and gashed Washington in Stanford’s upset win two weeks ago.
Love is the nation’s leading rusher and is averaging 8.8 yards per carry on the year. He has found the end zone in every game he has played this year and we saw what he meant to Stanford after they needed some luck to beat Oregon State.
Key Stat
This is the most porous Stanford defense we have seen in quite some time. The Cardinal are in the middle of the pack in terms of total defense and are giving up 5.8 yards per play. They have improved as the season has gone on, but still haven’t looked like what we usually see out of this team.
Where the Cardinal have struggled the most is against the run. Stanford is allowing opponents to run for 4.7 yards per carry and that’s one of the worst figures you’ll see from a power five school.
Free ATS Pick
There’s a reason that Notre Dame is a road favorite in this one. The running game has slowed down in recent weeks, but will pick it back up here. Love will have a good day, but Adams will outshine him in an Irish win.
College Football Odds: Notre Dame 38, Stanford 27
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