Notre Dame at Ohio State Prediction For Week 1
Odds, best bets and analysis for this college football matchup
Matthew Horner - Sep 2, 2022, 1:02pm EDTNotre Dame Fighting Irish
The Irish came so close once again last year to making the CFP, but they came up just short, with their loss to Cincinnati earlier last season weighing heavily as to why they were excluded. Furthermore, they lost their longtime head coach Brian Kelly, who decided to pack his bags overnight and head to LSU to fill their coaching vacancy. It was very strange, indeed, to see Kelly just seemingly out of nowhere leave the school he had been at for over a decade. Kelly was really good at winning and restoring the national prominence of the school, and yet Notre Dame couldn’t be more ecstatic about their new head coach Marcus Freeman. Everyone seems to love the guy, from players to coaches to recruits. This usually isn't the school where new head coaches get gigs, but Freeman obviously has the potential to be one of the best in college football.
Of course, doing that will be incredibly difficult. What the Irish did under Kelly is unlike anything they had done before. They had five double-digit win seasons in a row under their old coach, which is extremely impressive. Lou Holtz didn’t do that. No Notre Dame coach ever has, except for Kelly. Fans will need to temper expectations for Freeman, especially since he gets Ohio State here in Week 1. There are a whole lot of tough games on the schedule this year, but the Irish might be favored in each of the last 11. It's going to take some time, but after the Ohio State game, winning should be fully expected with a team and program this good.
Ohio State Buckeyes
I think the Buckeyes are angry. After last season's disappointing defeat at the hands of their arch-rival Michigan, Ohio State may be on a revenge tour in 2022, and that is bad news for just about anyone in the way. They were 11-2 last year, which was great, and they got a Rose Bowl win out of it. However, that just doesn't quite quench the thirst of the Buckeyes. They want more, they want a national title, and they want it now. The offense last season was incredible to watch, the very best in the nation in terms of yards and points. The scary part is that this season it's fitting to be better. The defense wasn’t quite as bad as everyone made it out to be. It started out the year awful and finished in much the same fashion, but it had its moments throughout the year. It will be better this season, you can bet on that.
I am not kidding when I tell you that this team is deep and talented enough to absolutely crush their entire schedule and make the National Championship game. Michigan should be no match for them in 2022, and the rest of the Big 10 is like stealing candy from a baby. Don't be shocked when they go undefeated and light up the scoreboard each game like it's the Fourth of July.
Prediction
I think you know what I'm going to say here if you read above. Ohio State is not losing this game, point blank period. They are going to shake the living daylights out of Notre Dame, and then move on to destroy their next opponent. If this line ever gets to just -14 and not -14.5, it is an auto-bet for me. Garbage time always make me weary of betting anything with a hook like that. I'd rather have a nice solid number so that way I push at the worst.