Check out our free Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs Penn State Nittany Lions pick and preview for this CFB College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl game in Miami Gardens. See who we like to win and cover the spread in this College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl CFB matchup.
ESPN is handling the broadcast as Notre Dame and Penn State face off at 7:30 ET on Thursday, January 9th, from Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. This is the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl, with Notre Dame coming in with a 13-1 record and Penn State at 13-2. The over/under line is at 45.5 points, and Notre Dame is the slight -1.5-point favorite. The game is being played on a neutral site.
Fighting Irish vs. Nittany Lions Matchup At A Glance
- Sport: CFB
- Teams: Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Penn State Nittany Lions
- Where: Miami Gardens at Hard Rock Stadium
- Date: Thursday, January 9th
- Betting Odds ND -1.5, ND -119 | PENNST -101 O/U 45.5
Fighting Irish Preview:
Notre Dame enters the College Football Playoff semifinal against Penn State with a 13-1 record. They are 7-1 at home and 6-0 on the road this season. The Fighting Irish have been favored in 13 of their 14 games, going 12-1 as the favorite.
Against the spread, Notre Dame is 12-2, with a perfect 6-0 mark on the road and a 6-2 record at home. They’ve covered the spread in 11 of 13 games as the favorite, with an average scoring margin of +24.1 points per game.
Their over/under record stands at 7-7, with an average line of 47.3 points. This week’s line is set at 45.5 points, and Notre Dame games have averaged 51.3 points per contest.
Fighting Irish Offense Breakdown
Notre Dame’s offense ranks 4th in points per game, scoring 37.7, and they are 14th in our offensive power rankings heading into the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl. Their strength is their running game, averaging 218.6 rushing yards per game, placing them 6th nationally.
Jeremiyah Love leads the ground attack with 1,076 rushing yards, 16 touchdowns, and an impressive 7 yards per carry. Quarterback Riley Leonard has thrown for 2,383 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions, with a passer rating of 95 and a 66.5% completion rate.
Fighting Irish Team Defense
Notre Dame's defense has been impressive this season, ranking third in the nation by allowing just 13.6 points per game. In their recent game against Georgia, they gave up only 10 points and held the Bulldogs to 62 rushing yards on 29 attempts. Georgia managed 234 passing yards, but Notre Dame’s defense limited them to just one passing touchdown.
Opposing quarterbacks have struggled against Notre Dame, posting a passer rating of just 58.4, the second-lowest in the country. The Irish have allowed only 167.4 passing yards per game, ranking 11th nationally, and opposing quarterbacks have completed just 50.4% of their passes. On the ground, Notre Dame is giving up 132.2 rushing yards per game.
Nittany Lions Preview:
Notre Dame enters the College Football Playoff semifinal against Penn State with a 13-1 record. They are 7-1 at home and 6-0 on the road this season. The Fighting Irish have been favored in 13 of their 14 games, going 12-1 as the favorite.
Against the spread, Notre Dame is 12-2, with a perfect 6-0 mark on the road and a 6-2 record at home. They’ve covered the spread in 11 of 13 games as the favorite, with an average scoring margin of +24.1 points per game.
Their over/under record stands at 7-7, with an average line of 47.3 points. This week’s line is set at 45.5 points, and Notre Dame games have averaged 51.3 points per contest.
Nittany Lions Offense Breakdown
Penn State’s offense ranks 20th in scoring, averaging 33.7 points per game, but they are 8th in our offensive power rankings heading into the College Football Playoff Semifinal. Their run game is their strength, with 203.5 rushing yards per game on 37.8 attempts, both 8th in the nation.
Kaytron Allen leads the ground attack with 1,026 yards, averaging 5 yards per carry, and has scored eight touchdowns. Quarterback Drew Allar has thrown for 3,192 yards, 24 touchdowns, and seven interceptions, with a passer rating of 107. Penn State ranks 10th in completion percentage, completing 67.6% of their passes.
Nittany Lions Team Defense
Penn State's defense ranks 11th nationally, allowing just 15.8 points per game. They’ve been strong against the run, giving up only 103.1 rushing yards per game, which is 14th best in the country. Opposing quarterbacks have a passer rating of 74.4 against Penn State, completing 58.4% of their passes and averaging 187.9 passing yards per game.
In their latest game, Penn State’s defense allowed 14 points and forced three interceptions. They held Boise State to 108 rushing yards on 40 attempts but gave up 304 passing yards. Overall, Boise State gained 412 yards and picked up 24 first downs against Penn State’s defense.
Fighting Irish vs Nittany Lions Betting Odds, Trends & Analysis
- When looking at their past ten road matchups, Notre Dame has an ATS record of 8-2 while averaging 36 per game. The team went 8-2 overall in these games.
- Through their last three home contests, the Penn State Nittany Lions offense has averaged 31 points per game while allowing an average of 28. Penn State posted an overall record of 2-1 while going 1-2 ATS.
- Going back to their last three games as the underdog, the Penn State Nittany Lions have a straight up record of 0-3. But, their mark vs the spread was just 0-3.
- The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have played well in their last five games as the betting favorite, going 5-0 straight up and 5-0 against the spread.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs Penn State Nittany Lions Free Pick
- KnupSports.com Free Betting Pick: Penn State Nittany Lions +1.5 Be sure to check out our other CFB Football betting previews for this week. KnupSports.com also updates their sports betting picks page daily with plays across all sports.
