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Michigan clashes with No. 16 Notre Dame Saturday night
By: Freddy Wander - StatFox
Published: 9/6/2014  at  5:24:00 AM
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MICHIGAN WOLVERINES (1-0)
at NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH (1-0)

Kickoff: Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET
Line: Notre Dame -4.5, Total: 54.5

A classic battle between Michigan and No. 16 Notre Dame continues this Saturday night in South Bend.

Here is the BetDSI Sportsbook betting preview for this matchup:

Michigan had a very poor 2013 season, going 7-6 overall and 3-5 in the Big Ten. The Wolverines look to get back to their old ways after a huge 52-14 victory over Appalachian State to start the season. They scored 42 points before allowing their opponent to score, as they outgained the Mountaineers 560-280. The ground game, which ranked 103rd in the nation last year (125.7 YPG), was impressive in the opener, tallying 350 rushing yards. Notre Dame had a solid 9-4 season in 2013 and capped it off with a bowl win over Rutgers. The team lost eight players to the NFL Draft, but in the 2014 opener against Rice, the Fighting Irish were victorious by a score of 48-17 as the offense went off for 576 yards. This will be the last meeting in this storied rivalry for a while with Notre Dame opting out of the last few years in the contract, but the school will be happy not to see them every season after taking losses in four of the past five years to the Wolverines. Last year, Michigan was a 41-30 victor as a 4.5-point favorite against Notre Dame, but the last time these two programs met in South Bend two years ago, the Fighting Irish came away with a 13-6 win as the teams combined for eight turnovers. Overall since 1992, the Wolverines are 10-7 SU (8-9 ATS) when facing Notre Dame. Some interesting trends to consider for Saturday include that the Irish are a mere 20-38 ATS (34%) after a game where they committed no turnovers since 1992, while Michigan is 5-18 ATS (22%) in road games after gaining 475+ total yards in its previous game over the same amount of time. There are no significant injuries to either team heading into this heated contest.

Which team will prevail in this classic rivalry game? For the answer, connect to College Football Best Bets for all the StatFox Experts picks throughout the 2014 regular season and bowl season. During the 2013 season, StatFox Dave led the experts with a 55% ATS mark (38-31-2), while Gary and Brian both finished with another winning season (51% ATS). StatFox Scott saved his best for last with a 5-2 ATS mark (71%) in college football bowl Best Bets.

Michigan was not too impressive in any areas last year, ranking 46th in scoring (32.2 PPG) on just 373.5 total YPG (87th in FBS). Most of the offense was through the air, as the Wolverines ranked 52nd in passing yards (247.7 YPG) and QB Devin Gardner is back for his senior season. Against Appalachian State, Gardner was extremely efficient, going 13-of-14 for 173 yards (12.4 YPA) with three touchdowns. Last year, he had an outstanding game in this matchup, completing 21-of-33 throws for 294 yards with five total touchdowns and only 1 INT. Michigan fans quickly forgot how horrible its running game was last season as HBs Derrick Green (15 rush, 170 yards, 1 TD) and De’Veon Smith (8 rush, 115 yards, 2 TD) both eclipsed 11 YPC last week. Last year, these two backs combined for a meager 387 yards on 109 attempts (3.6 YPC) and two touchdowns as Gardner had 483 rushing yards (2.9 YPC) and 11 TD scampers of his own. WR Devin Funchess has successfully made the transition from tight end, and is the team’s No. 1 receiver, which clearly showed with his seven receptions for 95 yards a three touchdowns against the Mountaineers. The Michigan defense was solid against the run in 2013 (140.2 YPG, 29th in FBS), but still allowed a pedestrian 26.8 PPG (67th in the nation). The Wolverines should improve this season, as LB Jake Ryan (30 tackles in 2013) returns for a full season and joins leader DB Ray Taylor (86 tackles, 4 INT in 2013).

The Fighting Irish had a very underwhelming offense last year behind the arm of Tommy Rees as they scored a woeful 27.2 PPG (74th in FBS) and averaged 406.2 YPG (68th in nation). QB Everett Golson returns this year after missing 2013 for academic reasons and was accountable for five touchdowns in the season opener when he went 14-for-22 with 295 yards (13.4 YPA) and 2 TD through the air while running for 41 yards (3.4 YPC) and 3 TD on the ground. The last time he faced the Wolverines in 2012, Golson was horrible with just three completions in eight attempts (30 yards) while throwing two interceptions. The running game is not led by just one player, as HBs Cam McDaniel (8 rush, 40 yards) and Tarean Folston (12 rush, 71 yards) lead the charge, while HB Greg Bryant (8 rush, 71 yards, 1 TD) could be a major factor if he continues to play well. The receivers are the biggest question mark on the team and WR William Fuller was the top target in the first game (4 rec., 85 yards, 1 TD) leading seven different players that caught a pass. The best returning receiver is sophomore WR Chris Brown who had 209 yards on 15 catches (13.9 avg) in 2013, and he opened 2014 with two grabs for 20 yards. The defense has many new players with just five students returning to the unit that ranked in the top-35 in scoring defense (22.4 PPG), total defense (366.2 YPG) and passing defense (198.2 YPG) last year. LB Jaylon Smith (66 tackles, 1 INT in 2013) should anchor the defense’s rushing protection while DBs Max Redfield and Austin Collinsworth (43 tackles, 3 INT in 2013) are considered one of the best safety combos in college football.


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