[12:00 PM] Notre Dame @ North Carolina State

Who will WIN this matchup?

Notre Dame Fighting Irish (2-3)

@ North Carolina State Wolfpack (3-1)

 

Current odds:

Notre Dame Fighting Irish: (+120)

North Carolina State Wolfpack: (-140)

 

• ESPN simulations have North Carolina State as XX% favorites to cover the spread.

• XX% of sports bets are currently on Notre Dame to win as (XX) favorites.

• The line for this game is NC State by 2.5 points.

• Notre Dame is trying to put together back-to-back wins for the first time this season but might be dealing with more than just a tough opponent. The Fighting Irish are hoping to avoid Hurricane Matthew when they visit North Carolina State on Saturday.

• Kizer was not immune from coach Brian Kelly’s criticism after an embarrassing 38-35 home loss to Duke in Week 4 dropped the Irish to 1-3, and the junior quarterback responded with a career high in passing yardage and four total touchdowns (three passing). Kelly elevated analyst Greg Hudson to defensive coordinator after the Duke loss, and the defense looked much the same while allowing 27 first-half points to Syracuse before turning things around with a strong second half. Kelly is turning the rest of the season into a learning experience for his young roster and is shuffling the pieces on defense, and 27 different players recorded at least one tackle last week.

• The Wolfpack are about to take a huge jump in competition with Notre Dame this week and trips to No. 3 Clemson and No. 8 Louisville the following two weeks. N.C. State should be able to keep pace offensively behind quarterback Ryan Finley, who is completing 72.4 percent of his passes and has thrown for nine TDs without an interception. Finley benefits from a balanced attack that is averaging 208 yards on the ground and has totaled 12 rushing TDs, led by senior running back Matthew Dayes (437 yards, three TDs).

• N.C. State SS Shawn Boone will miss the first half after being flagged for targeting last week.

• Notre Dame scored five TDs of 50 or more yards last week.

• The Wolfpack are averaging 75.5 penalty yards per game and were hit with 13 penalties for 144 yards last week.
StreakSmarts Pick: Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Confidence: 5/10

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