Notre Dame is Underdog Vs Michigan State – Lines on College Football

According to the NCAAF wagering lines on college football in the sportsbook, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish should lose to the Michigan State Spartans this Saturday by at least a field goal.

Notre Dame, who lost a heartbreaker to rival Michigan at home this past Saturday, now must contend with a decent Michigan State team on the road.  Can Notre Dame bounce back from the Michigan loss to challenge the favored Spartans?

Or, will the Irish lose yet again?

Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. Michigan State Spartans

Where:  Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, Michigan
When:  September 18th, 2010 at 8:00 pm EST
TV:  ABC

NCAAF Betting Lines

Notre Dame Fighting Irish                  +3 -110

Michigan State Spartans                     -3 -110

Based on the trends, the wagering lines on college football games rarely make as much sense as this one does.

• The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are 4 and 1 ATS in their last 5 games after allowing more than 200 yards rushing in their previous game.
• The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are 1 and 4 ATS in the last 5 meetings between these two teams.
• The Michigan State Spartans are 2-6-1 ATS in their last 9 games overall.
• The Michigan State Spartans are 9 and 4 ATS in their last 13 games following an ATS loss.

Although most football fans pay attention to the rivalry between the Michigan Wolverines and Notre Dame, the rivalry between the Spartans and the Irish is also a very good one.  It’s a rivalry that the Spartans have dominated against the spread in recent years.

The fact that Michigan State battles Notre Dame at home for this game and the trend above showing that the Irish are 1 and 4 ATS in the last 5 meetings between these two teams are the reasons that Notre Dame is the dog according to the wagering lines on college football in the sportsbook. 

Notre Dame should probably be 2 and 0 on the season, but that doesn’t mean that they’re the team to bet on in this game.  Michigan State has looked pretty good in their two games so far this season.  They beat Western Michigan 38 to 14 and then beat Florida Atlantic 30 to 17.  The Spartans failed to cover the spread against Florida Atlantic, however, and that might be a cause for concern.

But the cause for concern will most likely be short-lived. The Spartans are a terrific rushing team.  They’re ranked 11th in college football, averaging 261 yards per game, and could very well eat up Notre Dame’s rushing defense.

The Irish allowed Michigan to rush for 288 yards against them. Granted, the Wolverines have Denard Robinson, but the Irish still gave up a lot of yards on the ground last Saturday.  What’s worse for Notre Dame is the fact that Purdue, considered one of the worst teams in the Big Ten, ran for over 100 yards against them on the ground.

The key in this game will be whether or not the Irish can stop the Spartans’ ground game attack.  If they can’t, then it won’t matter that Notre Dame might possibly be able to exploit the Spartans’ secondary.  They won’t get the ball enough times to do it.

When it comes to expert lines on college football games, none shows more expertise than this one.  I have to believe that the Spartans, with more experience, will find a way to pull out at least a 3-point victory over Notre Dame on Saturday.

I’m backing Michigan State to cover the spread in this game.

NCAAF Betting Pick:  Michigan State Spartans -3 -110

Log onto the sportsbook for this week’s betting lines on college football games.

Sources:  espn.com, usatoday.com, covers.com