The Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-1) will travel to Atlanta to take on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (5-2) on Saturday afternoon. This game will take place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The Fighting Irish are 11.5-point favorites on the spread with a total of 49.5 points. Both teams will be looking to become bowl-eligible with one more win, but they both have their sights set even higher.
Both of these teams have specific strengths and weaknesses that their opponent may be able to take advantage of, which points me towards a possible play on the total for this game.
Let’s take a look at my Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech predictions and my college football picks for their NCAAF Week 8 matchup on Saturday, October 19.
Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech Picks, Predictions
My Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech best bet is on the over, with the best line currently available at bet365, according to our live NCAAF odds page.
Spread
PASS
Moneyline
PASS
Over/Under
Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech pick: Over 49.5
My Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech best bet is on the over, with the best line currently available at FanDuel, according to our live NCAAF odds page.
Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech Odds, Spread, Lines
| Notre Dame Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-13.5 -112 | 49 -108 / -112 | -550 |
| Georgia Tech Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+13.5 -108 | 49 -108 / -112 | +410 |
- Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech spread: Notre Dame -13.5
- Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech over/under: 49 points
- Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech moneyline: Notre Dame -550
Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech Preview
Notre Dame Football
Notre Dame’s loss to Northern Illinois caused everyone to write this team off, but after a few wins, the Irish are right back in the thick of the College Football Playoff conversation.
They're now 5-1 with a relatively manageable schedule ahead of them and plenty of chances to make an impression.
Notre Dame made a statement last weekend, beating down Stanford, 49-7. I was correct when writing about this game from the Notre Dame defensive perspective, but the offense came out with more juice than I expected, putting up a 94th-percentile Offensive Success Rate and a 91st-percentile EPA per play.
Riley Leonard had a shaky start to the season, but he's now averaging 0.02 EPA per drop back, which is still below where most expected him to be. Notre Dame ranks only 98th in Passing Success Rate and 88th in passing PPA to this point in the season.
This offense ranks only 90th in Success Rate but second in Explosiveness and 47th in Finishing Drives.
The Irish have been at their best on the ground, where they rank 71st in Success Rate but second in Explosiveness and 15th in PPA.
The discrepancy between their rushing and passing game checks out when you see that their offensive line ranks 21st in PFF run blocking grade and only 104th in PFF pass blocking grade.
Notre Dame’s defense ranks 31st in Success Rate, 14th in Explosiveness Allowed and 38th in Finishing Drives. They're only 102nd in Havoc generated so far this season, however.
The Irish rank fourth in PFF Coverage Grade and 27th in PFF Coverage Grade. They've been among the best pass defenses in FBS down-to-down, ranking fifth in Success Rate allowed and 11th in passing PPA allowed.
They've been prone to allowing big plays through the air though, ranking 108th in Passing Explosiveness allowed.
The rushing defense ranks only 79th in Success Rate allowed and 56th in rushing PPA allowed. They're 15th in Rushing Explosiveness allowed, 15th in PFF Tackling grade and 49th in PFF Run Defense grade.
Georgia Tech Football
Georgia Tech is a team that wants to primarily keep the ball on the ground, but it hasn't been effective in both facets of offense this season.
The Yellow Jackets rank 18th in Offensive Success Rate, 13th in Finishing Drives and 37th in Havoc allowed. They run the ball 52% of the time and rank 23rd in Rushing Success Rate and 33rd in rushing PPA.
This Georgia Tech passing game has been efficient as well, ranking 14th in Success Rate and 13th in PPA. They're only 82nd in Passing Explosiveness, but they've done a good job of picking up what they need to.
Haynes King has been aided by his solid offensive line, which ranks 34th in PFF Pass Blocking grade.
Defensively, Georgia Tech hasn't been as great. It's 87th in Defensive Success Rate and 86th in Finishing Drives. They're 109th in Passing Success Rate allowed and 95th in passing PPA allowed, while ranking 45th in Success Rate and 34th in PPA against the run.
Georgia Tech ranks 25th in PFF Run Defense grade but 132nd in Pass Rushing grade and 103rd in Coverage Grade as its passing defense is suspect.
Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech Matchup Analysis
Toggle the dropdowns below to hide or show how Notre Dame and Georgia Tech match up statistically:
Notre Dame Offense vs. Georgia Tech Defense
 | Offense | Defense |  Edge |
| Rush Success | 58 | 32 | |
| Line Yards | 28 | 8 | |
| Pass Success | 84 | 103 | |
| Havoc | 36 | 73 | |
| Finishing Drives | 9 | 46 | |
| Quality Drives | 50 | 64 | |
Georgia Tech Offense vs. Notre Dame Defense
| Offense | Defense | Edge |
| Rush Success | 26 | 79 | |
| Line Yards | 69 | 48 | |
| Pass Success | 10 | 2 | |
| Havoc | 15 | 25 | |
| Finishing Drives | 28 | 14 | |
| Quality Drives | 42 | 8 | |
Pace of Play / Other
| | |
| PFF Tackling | 15 | 90 |
| PFF Coverage | 3 | 102 |
| Special Teams SP+ | 12 | 81 |
| Middle 8 | 1 | 15 |
| Seconds per Play | 28.5 (93) | 27.1 (62) |
| Rush Rate | 56% (48) | 56% (40) |
Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech Prediction
The key matchup in this game is Leonard against this Georgia Tech pass defense. This may be one of the easier matchups he gets all season, as there likely won’t be much of a pass rush in his face, despite Notre Dame’s offensive line being terrible this season when pass blocking.
If the Irish offensive line holds up, then Leonard can have a great game.
On the other side, I also think Georgia Tech has a good enough offense to put points on the board. Its strength running the ball aligns with Notre Dame’s weakness on defense, which should help it out on early downs, while avoiding those third-and-long situations in which it would be forced to pass.
I like looking at the over in this game, as I could see both offenses having some success.
Both teams move slowly — which isn’t ideal for this play — but I think that they'll be able to both move the ball enough to put points on the board and go over this total at 49.5.
Pick: Over 49.5
Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech Start Time, Channel, Streaming, How to Watch
| Location: | Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA |
| Date: | Saturday, Oct. 19 |
| Kickoff Time: | 3:30 p.m. ET |
| TV / Streaming: | ESPN |
Notre Dame takes on Georgia Tech on Saturday, October 19, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech Betting Trends
- 72% of the bets and 70% of the money is on Notre Dame to cover the spread against Georgia Tech.
- 91% of the bets and 94% of the money is on the over to hit.
Notre Dame vs Georgia Tech Weather
