Date/Time: Saturday, October 20/3:35:00 PM ET, Notre Dame Stadium, South Bend, IndianaOff to its first 6-0 start since 2002, the No.5 Notre Dame will put their unbeaten record on the line when they host fellow independents Brigham Young University in the final home game in October for the Fighting Irish.
After seven weeks of NCAA football action, the undefeated Irish finally got back in the National Championship picture. For the Irish, who enter the game as -13.5 favorite, the match vs. BYU is a must win. With a total of 12 undefeated teams fighting for the top positions in the BCS Poll, a reverse would essentially shatter all hopes of playing the biggest game of the season. The good thing for Notre Dame is that they are big favorites to win this game according to the latest college football odds.
Now, putting a dent to Notre Dame’s winning record isn’t exactly an easy task. The Irish have one of the best defenses in the nation, ranking No. 2 overall. Their defense has allowed only 8.6 points per game and no rushing touchdowns in eight consecutive games. The streak extends to last season, more specifically, to the second quarter against Boston College on November 19, 2011. Additionally, Notre Dame ranks first in the nation in red zone defense, and have limited each of their past five opponents to less than 300 yards per game.
Following last weeks’ 20-13 overtime win over then No. 17 Stanford, and just one week before their anticipated game at 10th ranked Oklahoma, the main concern for Notre Dame is their quarterback situation, which remains unclear only two days before the match vs. BYU. Redshirt freshman Everett Golson suffered a concussion in last Saturday’s 20-13 overtime victory over Stanford, and will likely share time with secondary QB Tommy Rees even if he’s cleared to play this weekend. Notre Dame still has road games at Oklahoma (Oct. 27), Boston College (Nov. 10) and USC (Nov. 24).
Meanwhile, the Cougars come to South Bend holding an unconvincing 4-3 record that includes last weekend’s 42-24 loss at ranked Oregon State. Despite the loss, Cougars’ QB Riley Nelson made a convincing return as starting quarterback after two weeks off (injured back). Nelson threw 305 yards on a career-high 28 completions against Oregon State; however, he was intercepted three times and sacked four times. Earlier this season, Nelson had been pulled in favor of freshman quarterback Taysom Hill, who went down with a season ending knee injury in the Cougars' win over Utah State last week. Nelson got the support from coach Bronco Mendenhall after last week’s game, but will need to improve on his 6-to-8 touchdown-to-interception ratio to cement his position as starting quarterback.
BYU’s linebackers Kyle Van Noy and Brandon Ogletree lead the Cougars’ defense with 7.5 sacks and 57 tackles. On offense, 17-year old freshman Jamaal Williams has a team-high five rushing touchdowns. WR Cody Hoffman has caught a pass in 26 straight games, tied for the 10th-longest streak in the nation.
Game Odds:
Brigham Young Cougars: +13.5-110, ML +380
Notre Dame Fighting Irish: -13.5-110, ML -470
Game Total: 40.5, o/u-110
The game marks the seventh all-time meeting between these two programs. Notre Dame holds a 4-2 series edge over BYU, which includes a 49-23 victory in the last matchup held in 2005.
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