by Chuck Sommers
Wednesday, Nov 24, 2021
Game time: 8 p.m. ET
Venue: Stanford Stadium, Stanford, CA
Where to watch: FOX
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Notre Dame -19
BetMGM: Notre Dame -18.5
Caesars: Notre Dame -19.5
Season record
No. 5 Notre Dame: 10-1
Stanford: 3-8 (2-7 Pac-12)
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Notre Dame - Stanford preview and analysis
Last week
Notre Dame: won 55-0 vs. Georgia Tech
Stanford: lost 41-11 vs. California
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish can only sit and wait at this point.
Notre Dame's hopes of returning to the College Football Playoff hinder on some losses over the next couple of weeks; one of those teams happen to be the the only team to beat the Irish to this point, if that backwards logic makes any sense.
The Irish will close their regular season on the road on Saturday when they visit the Stanford Cardinal in Palo Alto.
Since that loss to the Cincinnati Bearcats on Oct. 2, the Irish have reeled off six straight wins. But if we're using the Cincinnati model on why the Cats are a fringe playoff team, we have to do that with Notre Dame, too.
None of those six wins came against teams that move the needle. Maybe that 3-point win at Virginia Tech? Even the 28-3 win at Virginia? But even then, USC and North Carolina don't really do it, especially when the Irish will have played more home games this year; and even the Cincinnati loss was in South Bend.
Notre Dame bolstered the team stats last week on Senior Day, a 55-0 win over the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Quarterback Jack Coan threw for 285 yards and two touchdowns while the Notre Dame defense held Georgia Tech to just 224 total yards. That was the fifth-largest shutout in program history and biggest since beating Rutgers 62-0 in 1996.
The Irish haven't allowed a touchdown in the last 187:23 and have outscored opponents 117-9 in those games. Normally that would be cause for totally impressive, but we've seen Notre Dame in these positions before where the defense is great ... until they face Alabama or Georgia.
And yet this run of impressive defense will continue against a Stanford team that has been a level above abysmal during this six-game losing streak. We are all still here trying to figure out how this team beat the Oregon Ducks. We may never know.
The Cardinal are coming off a 30-point loss to the California Golden Bears. The band was not on the field, but what was on the field was a horrible display from a David Shaw-coached team. Stanford was outgained 636-282 and yet had the ball for 28:17. Quarterback Tanner McKee threw for 239 yards and two interceptions.
Prediction
Stanford is just bad. There's no other way around it. The Cardinal have lost six straight against the spread and there just doesn't seem to have that much hope. Irish comfortably on Saturday. Notre Dame by 34
Betting trends
Notre Dame is 10-1 ATS in its last 11 November games.
Notre Dame is 6-0 ATS after two straight wins by 17 or more.
Stanford is 5-14 ATS in its last 19 as an underdog.
Stanford is 0-10 ATS in its last 10 November games.
Statistical leaders
Notre Dame:
Passing: Jack Coan -- 2,296 yards, 18 TD, 5 INT
Rushing: Kyren Williams -- 928 yards, 12 TD
Receiving: Michael Mayer -- 663 yards, 5 TD
Stanford:
Passing: Tanner McKee -- 2,155 yards, 14 TD, 7 INT
Rushing: Nathaniel Peat -- 401 yards, 3 TD
Receiving: Benjamin Yurosek -- 566 yards, 2 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.
