Sitting at a perfect 7-0 for the first time in program history, the Temple Owls will have the eyes of the college football world staring directly at them when they host No. 9 Notre Dame on Saturday. Temple is ranked for the first time since 1979 and most of the players on the team weren’t even born the last time the Owls played a game of this magnitude. It’ll be business as usual for the Irish coming off a bye week owning a 6-1 SU and ATS record.
ODDS
Notre Dame opened as a 9.5-point favorite with a total of 49. Temple has won eight straight games dating back to last season and is 6-2 ATS in that stretch. The Irish are 19-1 ATS in their last 20 October road games and have never lost on Halloween. The line was wagered to -10 and the total spiked to 50.
KEY MISMATCH
Temple has worked its way up from AAC bottom feeder over the past three seasons under coach Matt Rhule. The longtime Owls assistant and Pennsylvania native has cultivated one of the nastiest defenses in all of college football. The Owls are highly-ranked in almost every statistical category and have one of the most dangerous front sevens in the game. Temple has gotten it done with defense. The Owls are 14th nationally in total defense, including sixth against the run. They average more than 10 tackles for loss per game and should give the Irish plenty of trouble. “We’re a good team,” Ruhle said. This is a unit that allowed 17.5 points per game last season and has improved, while playing a more difficult schedule. Linebacker Tyler Matakevich is the only player to lead his team in tackles in every game. Tackle Matt Ioannidis is a load to move up front and Praise Martin-Oguike is the best pure pass rusher.
KEY STAT
14.6 – Temple’s points per game allowed to rank 8th nationally. The Owls have allowed just 43 points in their last four games and have given up more than 20 points just twice. Notre Dame averages 38.3 points per game and has scored 41 in each of its last two games.
BETTING ANGLE
Temple thought it had a good chance of returning to a bowl game this season, with 19 starters back from a 6-6 team that got snubbed last year. Now the Owls have bigger things in mind. Temple is one of 12 unbeatens remaining in the FBS and ran its record to 7-0 last week with a 24-14 come-from-behind victory at East Carolina, winning the game outright as a three-point road dog. The Owls trailed 14-10 late in the fourth quarter, took a lead on a P.J. Walker touchdown pass and sealed the victory with a blocked punt that turned into an insurance score. Temple owns wins this season over Penn State and Cincinnati. But what they’d really like is a signature victory against a big time foe like Notre Dame. Temple is a great story, but the winning streak will probably come to an end this week. Playing on the road means the spread is a little more likable to the Irish, and an expected pro-Notre Dame crowd will pack Lincoln Financial Field. Plus, Notre Dame is 15-0 all-time when playing on Halloween.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
Temple’s defense is legit and the Irish will have problems penetrating the unit. But the Owls have yet to face a team as talented overall as Notre Dame and that could pose a problem. Temple has a difficult time moving the ball and the inability to sustain drives will be a drain on the defense. Temple will be jacked to play this game and the emotion of the moment will carry them only for so long. Watch for the Irish to take control in the second half, using their beefy offensive line to create running room for C.J. Prosise, and DeShone Kizer will again masterfully run the offense. Notre Dame scored 41 against a talented USC defense two weeks ago and should be able to do enough against the Owls. The Irish are vulnerable on defense to the big play and surrendered 590 yards to USC, the most in six years under Brian Kelly. And it’s been that way all season for the Irish, allowing opponents to score in chunks. If Walker and AAC leading rusher Jahad Thomas hit for big scoring plays early, the momentum might carry Temple to a victory. I just don’t see that happening.
Notre Dame 37, Temple 20
BookMaker opened the spread for this game at -9.5 in favor of the Fighting Irish. The NCAA lines total surfaced at 49. Now you can wager in-game while the action unfolds with BookMaker's live betting option.
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