Marshall vs. Notre Dame Odds
| Marshall Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+20.5 -105 | 50.5 -105o / -115u | +860 |
| Notre Dame Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-20.5 -115 | 50.5 -105o / -115u | -1600 |
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish went down swinging against Ohio State in their season opener. Marcus Freeman’s group was a three-possession underdog on the road, yet held a 10-7 lead at halftime.
The Irish offense stalled, and the Buckeyes broke down their defense to pull out a 21-10 victory.
Though the program covered, Freeman was not impressed with the moral victory.
Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman: “We’re not in it for moral victories, man.”
He seems pretty distressed. He doesn’t like to lose. pic.twitter.com/9JPwuBnfTg
— Tyler Horka (@tbhorka) September 4, 2022
Freeman is now 0-2 in his career as head coach at Notre Dame after losing to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl last season.
He will have an excellent opportunity to find his first victory at home against Marshall this week.
The Thundering Herd started off their first game in the Sun Belt with a dominant 50-point victory over Norfolk State, Marshall outgained its FCS opponent by 500 yards of total offense.
However, Marshall won’t have the same luxury against a dominant Notre Dame defense.
Notre Dame looks to bounce back off its opening loss and find Freeman not only his first win but also his first cover against the spread.
Marshall Thundering Herd
Marshall absolutely dominated Norfolk State in every facet of its opening game.
The Thundering Herd totaled 612 yards of offense with 232 yards coming through the air. Henry Colombi completed 24 of his 26 pass attempts while averaging 7.7 yards per attempt. Colombi tossed one touchdown with one of his two incompletions being picked off.
It was an impressive first start with the program after transferring in from Texas Tech.
The rushing attack stole the headlines for the Herd, as the group totaled 380 yards on the ground. The offense averaged 7.5 yards per carry on its 51 attempts.
Marshall shut down the Norfolk State rushing attack by holding the unit to 1.1 yards per attempt on 31 carries. Norfolk also only gained 84 passing yards throughout the game on its 14 attempts.
Reproducing that success is going to be nearly impossible against Notre Dame, especially after Marshall was dealt damaging news that running back Rasheen Ali would miss the early portion of the season.
BREAKING: Marshall star running back Rasheen Ali will take some time away from the football team and will miss a portion of the upcoming season, head coach Charles Huff said in a statement Tuesday.
Full statement from head coach Charles Huff below. pic.twitter.com/SLIdbhgqOa
— Luke Creasy (@LukeCreasy) August 23, 2022
Ali is one of the top running backs in the nation, as he ran for over 1,450 yards on the ground while averaging 5.9 yards per carry last season. He was added to the Walter Camp National Player of the Year watch list and can make defenders miss inside a phone booth.
Without Ali in the lineup, it will be a monumental task to keep up offensively with the Irish.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
The Notre Dame offense looked impressive in the first half against an elite Ohio State defense. Tyler Buchner completed his first eight pass attempts, and the Irish took a 10-7 lead in the second quarter.
However, that marked the end of the success for the offense, which was shut out for the remainder of the game.
Buchner completed just two of his final 10 pass attempts, and the Irish mustered only 253 total yards of offense. The running game was virtually nonexistent, as the group averaged 2.5 yards per carry on its 30 attempts.
The Notre Dame defense looked as good as advertised against its top-tier Week 1 opponent. The unit returns 83% of its production from last season and held Ohio State to just 21 points and 5.9 yards per play.
Notre Dame failed to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, but that won’t be the case against a smaller Marshall defensive front. Though the Marshall offense was impressive in its opener, the loss of its star running back will catch up to the Herd in this matchup.
Marshall vs. Notre Dame Betting Pick
Most polls and power rankings had Notre Dame ranked among the top 10 in the country, and the Irish's performance against the Buckeyes shouldn’t have changed much. The Irish were impressive and contained a Buckeyes offense that put up 560 yards and 46 points per game last season.
Though the Irish offense struggled down the stretch, the group showed glimpses of impressive drives — and Notre Dame won't face a defense like Ohio State’s for the rest of its season, let alone this week.
The Thundering Herd ranked outside the top 75 in Success Rate and Havoc created on rushing plays last season. Consequently, the Notre Dame offense will be looking to establish the line of scrimmage early and often after failing to do so against Ohio State.
The Marshall offense will be outmatched by the Notre Dame defense, which is among the best in the country. The Herd will struggle to find success on the ground with Ali still out, which will put all the pressure on Colombi's arm.
That is a recipe for disaster.
Freeman will want to put on a show in his first home game in South Bend. I anticipate the Irish to win in blowout fashion against a Marshall team that is missing its key offensive weapon.
Pick: Notre Dame -20.5 (Play to -21)
