Oklahoma State Cowboys vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 01/01/2022

by Amedeus Mastrangelo

Sunday, Dec 19, 2021
Game Time: 1:00 pm ET, Saturday, January 1, 2022
Venue:  State Farm Stadium, Glendale, AZ
Where to Watch:  ESPN

 

Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  OK State +2, ND -2; Over/Under:  45.5 points
Bet365:  Point Spread:  OK State +2.5, ND -2.5; Over/Under:  45.5 points
BetMGM:  Point Spread:  OK State +2.5, ND -2.5; Over/Under:  45.5 points
 

Season Record

Oklahoma State Cowboys:  11-2 (1st place, Big 12)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish:  11-1 (1st place, FBS Independents)
 
Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! Ben Burns has an 8-0 (2021) BOWL RECORD! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

 

Oklahoma State Cowboys vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish Preview and Analysis

 
Recent Form
Oklahoma State Cowboys:  lost on a neutral site on Dec. 4 against the Baylor Bears 21-16.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish:  won on the road on Nov. 27 against the Stanford Cardinal 45-14.
 
 
 

Oklahoma State Cowboys Analysis

Oklahoma State is coming into this game after finishing their season with an 11-2 record overall and they are 0-1 in their neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. They have won 5 of their last 6 games but are coming into this one off of a loss in their last game which snapped a 5 game winning streak that they were on. Their 5 wins in that span were against the Kansas Jayhawks, the West Virginia Mountaineers, the TCU Horned Frogs, the Texas Tech Red Raiders, and the Oklahoma Sooners while their loss came against the Baylor Bears in their last game. That loss to Baylor was for the Big 12 Championship and Oklahoma State needed to win that game to have a chance at the college football playoffs but they came up short. Spencer Sanders completed 31/46 passes for 257 yards and 4 interceptions. He also led the team in rushing with 33 yards on 13 carries while Dezmon Jackson led the team in carries with 19 for 31 yards. Dominic Richardson ran in 1 TD on the ground in that one but overall, they could not get anything going on the ground. Davontavean Martin led the receivers with 88 yards on 9 receptions. Collin Oliver led the defense in sacks in that game with 2 while no one on the defense was able to come up with an interception in that one. They have scored 398 points in their 13 games this season averaging 30.6 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 218 points against them allowing 16.8 PPG. Their offense is averaging 402.9 YPG while their defense is allowing 273.6 YPG.
 
 

Notre Dame Fighting Irish Analysis

Notre Dame is coming into this game after finishing their regular season with an 11-1 record overall and they are 1-0 in their neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. They only had 1 loss all season but they have gone on a 7 game winning streak since then. Their loss was against the Cincinnati Bearcats while their 7 straight wins came against the Virginia Tech Hokies, the USC Trojans, the North Carolina Tar Heels, the Navy Midshipmen, the Virginia Cavaliers, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, and the Stanford Cardinal in their last game. Jack Coan completed 26/35 passes for 345 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception in that one. Kyren Williams led the team in rushing with 74 yards and 2 touchdowns on 19 carries while Tyler Buchner and Coan both ran in 1 TD each on the ground in that one. Kevin Austin had a nice day as he led the receivers with 125 yards on 6 receptions while Michael Mayer was right behind him with 105 on 9 receptions. Braden Lenzy and George Takacs both caught touchdown passes in that one with 1 each. Jayson Ademilola and JD Bertrand both led the team in points in that game with 4 solo tackles and 1 assisted one. Both Justin and Jayson Ademilola recorded the only sacks in that game with 1 each while no one on the defense was able to come up with an interception in that one. They have scored 423 points in their 12 games this season averaging 35.3 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 219 points against them allowing 18.3 PPG. Their offense is averaging 415.3 YPG while their defense is allowing 338.8 YPG.
 

 

Oklahoma State vs Notre Dame Prediction

Notre Dame is coming into this Fiesta Bowl as a 2.5 point favorite with the current betting odds according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Notre Dame has been playing really well in their last few games of the season. Both of these teams have very good offenses that can score a lot of points but they both have great defenses as well that have been allowing less than 20 points per game this season. Oklahoma State does not want to be playing in this bowl game though. They were very close to beating Baylor and if they had then they would have been the Big 12 conference champions and would have gone to a better bowl game and possibly even the college football playoffs. Their motivation to play their best in this game is questionable and the players may not try their hardest here. Notre Dame is an independent team so they already knew it was a tough road for them to make the playoffs. Notre Dame will come to win this game and finish their year off on a good note because of the pride their players have for that program. The best bet to place in this game is on Notre Dame to cover the spread here.
 
Oklahoma State Notre Dame Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, January 1, 2022 (1:00 pm ET start time) is ND 31 OK State 21.
Don't miss our champion handicappers free picks and expert football picks today.  And if you enjoyed this Oklahoma State Cowboys Notre Dame Fighting Irish prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our weekly NCAAF predictions and previews.
 

NCAAF Betting Trends

 
Oklahoma State Cowboys: 13-23 O/U in all games. 1-6 O/U when the total is between 42.5 and 49. 0-8 O/U as an underdog. 1-9 O/U as a neutral field underdog. 10-17 O/U after playing a conference game. 2-6 O/U after a bye week. 2-9 O/U after 1 or more consecutive losses against the spread. 1-5 O/U after a game where they committed 3 or more turnovers.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish: 24-13 ATS in all games. 6-1 ATS when the total is between 42.5 and 49. 19-10 ATS as a favorite. 18-6 ATS after playing a non-conference game. 10-3 ATS in games played on a grass field. 20-7 ATS in non-conference games. 10-0 ATS after having won 6 or 7 out of their last 8 games. 10-3 ATS after allowing 100 or less rushing yards last game. 
 

Key Injuries

 
Oklahoma State Cowboys:  None.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish:  K. Williams (RB) Out Jan 1 - Personal. K. Hamilton (S) Out indefinitely - Knee injury. A. Davis (WR) out for season - Knee injury.
 

Notable Quotes

 
"I told the team in the locker room how proud I was that they've done everything we've asked them to do since January. Came up just a few inches short." - Mike Gundy on his team’s loss against Baylor in the Big 12 Championship game.
 
 
"The No. 1 thing is I have to be the lead recruiter for every recruit. I've made that very clearly known to staff. I'm going to be involved with every single recruit that we're involved with, and I want to be the bridge between myself and the position coaches and coordinators, 'Hey, you're going to utilize the head coach in whatever way you need.'" - Marcus Freeman on recruiting as the new head coach of the team.
 
 

Starting Lineups

 
Oklahoma State Cowboys
WR Bray, Jaden  
WR Green, Blaine 
WR Presley, Brennan 
WR Martin, Tay 
CW Carter, Logan 
QB Sanders, Spencer 
RB Warren, Jaylen 
 
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
WR Austin Jr., Kevin 
WR Lenzy, Braden 
WR Styles, Lorenzo
TE Mayer, Michael 
QB Coan, Jack 
RB Tyree, Chris
 

Statistical Leaders

 
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Passing: S. Sanders (2468)
Rushing: J. Warren (1134)
Receiving: T. Martin (942)
Touchdowns: J. Warren (11)
 
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Passing: J. Coan (2641)
Rushing: K. Williams (995)
Receiving: K. Austin Jr. (783)
Touchdowns: K. Williams (17)
 
Coaches:
Oklahoma State Cowboys: Mike Gundy (17th season)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Marcus Freeman (1st season)


Amedeus Mastrangelo

About the Author:

Amedeus Mastrangelo has been heavily wagering on all sports for years and plays just about everything, including sides, totals, favorites, underdogs, against the spread, alternative spreads, first half, second half, player props, and futures. The bottom line is, if Mastrangelo can see an edge in any way shape or form, then he's going to take advantage.

All photographic images used for editorial content have been licensed from the Associated Press.

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