Michigan State Notre Dame Betting – Fighting Irish Face Must-Win Situation Against Sparty
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are quite improbably an 0-2 football team after two games. Can the Irish break the spell and manage to get out of their own way when they move the ball?
Michigan State Spartans @ Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Saturday, September 17
Sports betting line: Notre Dame -5
Why Michigan State Will Win
The ranks of MLB baseball betting gurus near Detroit who are following the runaway success of the hometown Tigers are probably going to catch some of this contest on the weekend. After all, the Detroit Tigers lead the American League Central by so many games that their weekend contests won’t mean much. It’s this game between Michigan State and Notre Dame that will mean a lot, and Sparty clearly has the best quarterback on the field. Kirk Cousins led MSU to 11 regular-season wins last year and piloted the Spartans’ offense with poise, levelheadedness, and – most tellingly of all – a relative absence of the mind-blowing mistakes and head-scratching turnovers that have burned Michigan State so many times before. Cousins is an anchor and a bedrock of emotional stability for the Spartans. The simple presence of No. 8 in the huddle and on the field will carry Michigan State a very long way on Saturday. If this is a quarterback-based game, Sparty has the clear edge over Notre Dame and its evidently erratic signal caller, Tommy Rees. The fact that Notre Dame has lost two games in which it has gained 500 yards shows that it has a turnover problem, a problem of a serious nature with potentially chronic dimensions. Forget the fact that this game is being played in South Bend, Indiana, on the Notre Dame campus. If Michigan State plays its best game of the year, the Fighting Irish won’t be able to keep up.
Why Notre Dame Will Win
When you consider how to frame your sports bet in week three of the college football season, just consult the odds. Look at the number of times in which a team has gained at least 500 yards and lost (due to turnovers plus other complicating factors). It’s not a long list, but Notre Dame has pulled off that semi-miraculous feat on two straight occasions. Yes, on two straight weekends, the Fighting Irish have gacked away commanding positions because they committed too many turnovers against so-so opposition. South Florida and Michigan are not world-beaters this year, not by any stretch of the human imagination. For Notre Dame to beat neither team is a cause for concern in the world of Brian Kelly, the Irish’s new coach. Urgency and motivation should propel Notre Dame in this contest. The Fighting Irish should pick up the emotional fuel they need. Playing at home has always been known to help as well. Michigan State really wants this game, but Notre Dame needs it. That’s often what enables one team to exceed the other in the cauldron of gameday pressure.
Who Will Win
Notre Dame might need this game, but Michigan State has the better quarterback and a winning attitude that was developed last year. The Spartans will win this game outright.
College Football Betting Pick: Michigan State +5
