by Chuck Sommers
Thursday, Nov 18, 2021
Game time: 2:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame, IN
Where to watch: NBC
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Notre Dame -17
BetMGM: Notre Dame -17.5
Caesars: Notre Dame -17
Season record
Georgia Tech: 3-7 (2-6 ACC)
No. 8 Notre Dame: 9-1
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Georgia Tech - Notre Dame preview and analysis
Last week
Georgia Tech: lost 41-30 vs. Boston College
Notre Dame: won 28-3 at Virginia
I’ll give it to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish for one thing: They know how to take care of the inferior opponents in front of them.
The Irish will try to win their sixth straight game on Saturday when they host the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, as Notre Dame hopes for a last-second push toward the College Football Playoff.
That loss to the Cincinnati Bearcats continues to loom large, even though undefeated Cincinnati isn’t in the top four while Notre Dame has moved up seven spots over the past few weeks.
Notre Dame is coming off a 28-3 win over the Virginia Cavaliers last week, giving the Irish 40 consecutive victories against unranked opponents. For context, that streak was 35 over a month ago. Five straight victories, all against unranked opponents, has given Notre Dame some life heading into the final stretch of this season.
The committee and voters think that’s good enough to get them up as high as they are, but I digress.
Notre Dame gave up 92 yards to Virginia in the first half, and the Cavaliers were too far gone after that to have anyone believe they could make a comeback. It was the first time Virginia was held scoreless in the first half since 2017, which in fairness, can be hard to do against a Bronco Mendenhall-coached team.
Meanwhile, the Irish had 249 rushing yards for the entire game. Kyren Williams had 70 on 14 carries as well as a touchdown, while Logan Diggs had 64 on nine carries. The run game did all the work needed to make it an easy day for quarterback Jack Coan, who finished 15 of 20 for 132 yards and three touchdowns despite throwing an interception.
Leading receiver Michael Mayer, probably the best tight end in the country, caught seven receptions for 84 yards and a touchdown.
The Irish’s defense was just too good that the offense didn’t need to do much. Notre Dame accumulated for seven sacks; two of them came from Rylie Mills, while Bo Bauer and Justin Ademilola had 1.5 each; Virginia quarterback had only 196 yards and two interceptions on 18 of 33 passing.
Not generally good news a struggling club like Georgia Tech wants to hear, but the Yellow Jackets have been a tough out for most of this season. Bowl eligibility is all but out the door for the Jackets, but they’ve been outscored by a total of 14 points through 10 games for an average final score of 30-29. Four of GT’s losses have been by one score, and six of seven have come by 11 points or less.
Last week was no exception. The Boston College Eagles went on a 10-play, 90-yard drive that took 6:05 off the clock for a touchdown to put BC up 38-30 in the fourth quarter. But GT couldn’t capitalize for the tying drive. Maybe that wouldn’t have been needed if the extra point actually would’ve tied the game.
Georgia Tech had only 343 total yards, led by quarterback Jordan Yates throwing for 126 yards and a touchdown on 17 of 28 passing in his fourth career start. Freshman running back Jahmyr Gibbs, who ranks No. 2 in the country in all-purpose yards (168) had 125 total yards and a touchdown in the loss.
Prediction
Notre Dame has dominated this series (29-6-1) and has not lost under coach Brian Kelly. There’s no reason to believe that won’t continue this week. For as fraudulent as the Irish may be when it comes to the best teams in college football, they are certainly better than the teams put on their schedule. This shouldn’t be a problem and Notre Dame should get out with its 10th win. Notre Dame by 20
Betting trends
Georgia Tech is 1-4 ATS following three straight conference games this season.
GT is 5-1 ATS in its last six after allowing 31 points or more in consecutive games.
Notre Dame is 1-5 in its last six ATS as a home favorite between 14.5 and 21 points.
Notre Dame is 13-3 ATS in its last 16 after an under.
Statistical leaders
Georgia Tech:
Passing: Jeff Sims -- 1,468 yards, 12 TD, 7 INT
Rushing: Jahmyr Gibbs -- 687 yards, 4 TD
Receiving: Jahmyr Gibbs -- 469 yards, 2 TD
Notre Dame:
Passing: Jack Coan -- 2,011 yards, 16 TD, 5 INT
Rushing: Kyren Williams -- 872 yards, 10 TD
Receiving: Michael Mayer -- 577 yards, 4 TD
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
