Irish Travel to Battle Dangerous Tar Heels
The 2nd-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish return to action this week against the 25th-Ranked North Carolina Tar Heels. All indications show that this game could be a barn burner.
Notre Dame had a week off last week to get ready to battle the Tar Heels on Friday at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C. We still have questions about the Irish and how good they actually are. Their signature win wasn’t so signature.
TIME: 3:30 p.m. ET. TV: ABC; BETTING LINE: Notre Dame -5.5 / TOTAL 69.5 Over -115.
Notre Dame is 8-0 overall and 7-0 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. They still have some work to do to qualify for the ACC championship game. Clemson and Miami, both have one loss and are in the mix. North Carolina is 6-2overall and 6-2 in the ACC can stay in contention by defeating the Irish.
Notre Dame and North Carolina have similar firepower
North Carolina wiped out a 21-point second-half hole to overcome visiting Wake Forest 59-53 on Nov. 14th. Notre Dame followed its win against then-No. 1 Clemson by winning 45-31 at Boston College. The win against Clemson shouldn’t be celebrated too much. It was at home and without Trevor Lawrence playing for the Tigers. We still don’t know how good this Irish team is.
Howell posted a school-record 550 passing yards against Wake Forest.
Notre Dame has improved at the cornerback position. They have true freshman Clarence Lewis on one side. In order to keep the Tar Heels in check, controlling the line of scrimmage will be important.
Notre Dame holds opponents to an ACC-best 85.1 rushing yards per game. North Carolina has two running backs that are over 100 yards per game. Javonte Williams runs for 108.5 and Michael Carter scampers for 100.9 ypg.
Williams has a league-high 18 touchdowns, 15 coming on the ground. Howell tops the ACC with 338 yards per game of total offense and 23 touchdown passes.
Notre Dame quarterback Ian Book has thrown for 11 touchdowns with one interception. Irish running back Kyren Williams is averaging 97.1 rushing yards per game.
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Tar Heels Defense is a Mess
North Carolina has given up some large point totals this season. The Tar Heels could have some new looks this week to try to slow down the high powered Irish offense.
“We’re also throwing in some wrinkles in practice to make sure we’re on top of everything,” linebacker Jeremiah Gemmel said. “Notre Dame likes to attack your weaknesses, and we’ve seen that on tape throughout the year.”
Notre Dame will have adjustments to make on the offensive line the Tar Heels hope.
Veteran starting right guard Tommy Kraemer underwent an appendectomy and will miss the North Carolina game for the Irish. Notre Dame is already without center Jarrett Patterson because of a broken foot.
This is North Carolina‘s final ACC home game. The Tar Heels will attempt to play a non-league home game next week against Western Carolina.
That game was added to the schedule after the Tar Heels’ attempts to play non-conference contests in September were derailed, was pushed up from Dec. 11 to Dec. 5 amid numerous rescheduled ACC games.
The Dart Throw: North Carolina 42, Notre Dame 38
Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs UNC Tar Heels Betting Trends
North Carolina Trends
- Trend Under is 4-0 in Tar Heels last 4 games as a home underdog of 10.5 or greater. Hit % 100.00% (4) O/U 0|4 Push 0 W/L
- Over is 4-0 in Tar Heels last 4 games as a favorite. 100.00% (4) 4|0 0
- Under is 12-5-1 in Tar Heels last 18 games as a home underdog. 70.60% (18) 5|12 1
- Over is 7-3-1 in Tar Heels last 11 games as an underdog. 70.00% (11) 7|3 1
Notre Dame Trends
- Trend Over is 4-0 in Fighting Irish last 4 games as a road underdog of 3.5-10.0. Hit % 100.00% (4) O/U 4|0 Push 0 W/L
- Under is 10-1 in Fighting Irish last 11 games as a road underdog of 10.5 or greater. 90.90% (11) 1|10 0
- Under is 5-1 in Fighting Irish last 6 games as an underdog of 0.5-3.0. 83.30% (6) 2|6 0
- Over is 11-5 in Fighting Irish last 16 games as a favorite of 0.5-3.0. 68.80% (16) 11|5 0
Meetings Trends
- Trend Road team is 4-0 ATS in their last 4 meetings. Hit % 100.00% (4) O/U Push 0 W/L 0|4
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