Duke Blue Devils vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish Betting Preview
Where: Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend
When: Saturday, September 24, 3:30 PM ET
Line: Duke Blue Devils (+21) vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (-21) – view all NCAA Football odds and lines
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Betting on the Duke Blue Devils (+21)
This isn’t basketball so it’s not really shocking to see Duke losing. The Blue Devils suffered their second defeat of the season last week, 24-13, to Northwestern.
Execution was a big problem for Duke against Northwestern. The Blue Devils had some success gnawing at Northwestern’s defense to the point that they reached the Wildcats’ 35-yard line five times. Three of which, however, culminated into an interception, a muffed field goal, and a fumble.
Duke’s offense has some pop in it, as evidenced by the team ranking 30th in passing offense and 86th in rushing. Cracking Notre Dame’s D is going to be a challenge but the Blue Devils may be facing a disheartened Fighting Irish, who are coming off a tough loss to Michigan State.
Applying constant pressure on Notre Dame’s quarterbacks could key an upset victory for Duke. Duke’s pass rush has been superb this season, albeit against questionable opponents, but 14 sacks in three games is nothing to ignore at if you’re the Fighting Irish. Moreover, Duke has 16 hurries this year.
Betting on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (-21)
A pick-me-up win is what the Fighting Irish are after this coming Saturday following a bitter setback at the hands of the Spartans last Saturday, 36-28.
There would be no excuse for ND to lose to a lightweight like Duke, as the Fighting Irish are No. 12 in the AP Poll. Notre Dame’s defense, however, has been a constant source of disappointments for Notre Dame, which is giving up 32.0 points per game. The Fighting Irish’s run defense has been particularly mediocre, ranking 99th in the nation with 198.7 rushing yards surrendered per contest.
Duke’s not that big of a team on the ground with only 154 rushing yards on 64 carries over its last two games so the defensive focus could spent more on the Blue Devils’ receivers such as Anthony Nash, Johnathan Lloyd and T.J. Rahming.
As for their own offense, the Fighting Irish can flat out score and their outlook of doing just that against Duke is bolstered by the presence of DeShone Kizer.
Kizer, who had 344 passing yards with two touchdowns and an interception in the loss to Michigan State, will have at least one talented wideout to look for downfield. C.J. Sanders has been a headache for opposing secondaries, as he already has 154 receiving yards and two touchdowns on 10 receptions this year.
Notre Dame is 6-4 ATS in its last 10 games as the home team.
Writer’s Prediction
Notre Dame (-21) wins, 42-21.
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