Notre Dame is back on track with a strong win over Louisville as part of a three-game winning streak, and now it’s rested a bit with two weeks off before getting its final home game before dealing with Florida State a month from now.
Stanford has been hit-or-miss, but the team that rose up and shocked Syracuse couldn’t get going against Clemson and got rocked by Virginia Tech.
The Fighting Irish won the meeting at the end of last year 56-23, but the fan base is still scarred by the stunning 16-14 Cardinal win in the middle of 2022.
Notre Dame vs Stanford Preview
Notre Dame vs Stanford How to Watch
Date: Saturday, October 12, 2024
Game Time: 3:30 pm ET
Venue: Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame, IN
How to Watch: NBC
Notre Dame (4-1), Stanford (3-2)
Why Stanford Will Win
Notre Dame has been beat up.
It lost star pass rusher Boubacar Traore, and the secondary and offensive line are not very strong. The depth will be tried again after two weeks off, too.
Stanford needs to start strong. QB Ashton Daniels missed the game against Virginia Tech, but he should be fine and ready to go for this one.
Cardinals’ passing attack has been terrible so far this season; in their four games against FBS teams, they have not even hit 180 yards. The run game has been their main weapon.
It has no reason to be scared of this. Even if the Irish secondary is great, the Cardinals will keep pushing.
Why Notre Dame Will Win
Stanford does not have a way to throw downfield.
One big play helped them beat Syracuse, but that was it.
Nobody should hit the Irish defence too hard, even though it is pretty beat up. Their running game may be getting over four yards per carry, but they have not scored in three games in a row.
This is how Notre Dame needs to play: forget about passing and just grind, grind, grind.
It is been the same with the Irish for a few weeks now, and it still is. They only ran the ball 28 times against Northern Illinois before giving up on the running game. Things go well when they get over 30 runs.
Cal Poly ran the ball 20 times in Stanford’s two wins, while Syracuse only ran the ball 17 times. The three teams that beat Stanford all ran at least 30 times.
Notre Dame vs Stanford: Who Will Win
Fans of Notre Dame will lose it if Stanford keeps this close by pounding the ball for over four yards per run. All of those good drives will stop working, though.
The Irish will break through in the second half and start to pull away. It will not be pretty, especially after the break.
Notre Dame fans, do not ask how the sausage was made. Just look at the end score.
Notre Dame vs Stanford Prediction, Betting Lines
Notre Dame 34, Stanford 13
Line: Notre Dame -23.5, o/u: 45.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 2.5
Notre Dame vs Stanford Must See Rating: 3
