Sunday brings yet another must-see, top-10 college football matchup in primetime, as No. 6 Notre Dame visits No. 10 Miami.
The Fighting Irish are coming off a run to the national title game, while the Hurricanes are fresh off an impressive — but ultimately disappointing — 10-3 campaign.
Both of these teams have massive expectations in 2025, as evidenced by their odds to make the College Football Playoff. At DraftKings, ND is -180 to return to the CFP, while the Hurricanes are slight underdogs at +170.
I should also mention here that if anyone has a few hours on their hands this afternoon, they should check out the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary, “Catholics vs. Convicts.”
Notre Dame vs. Miami Betting Odds
How To Watch Notre Dame vs. Miami
- Kickoff: 7:30 p.m.
- TV: ABC
Notre Dame vs. Miami Betting Analysis
- Notre Dame 2024 record: 14-2
- Miami 2024 record: 10-3 (6-2 ACC)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish Betting News, Outlook
Notre Dame brings back arguably the best running back in the country in Jeremiyah Love, and the Irish should once again boast a stout defense despite losing four players from last year’s unit to the NFL Draft.
The question for the Irish is what to expect from redshirt freshman CJ Carr. He was one of the top recruits in the country in high school, but his team’s matchup vs. Miami will mark his collegiate debut. Don’t be surprised if Carr looks good right away, though, thanks to an excellent supporting cast.
It would be an understatement to call both Love and Jadarian Price talented, proven backs. Love has averaged 6.5 yards per carry across 234 career attempts, while Price has averaged 6.1 ypc on 167 carries over the last two years.
At receiver, Notre Dame brings back Jaden Greathouse, who was outstanding against both Penn State and Ohio State in the CFP, and the Irish added two proven targets in the transfer portal in seniors Malachi Fields from Virginia and Will Pauling from Wisconsin.
The ND O-line is always among the nation’s best, and this year’s group should be no exception, as it returns four of five starters, including multiple likely future pros. This summer, Pro Football Focus ranked the Irish OL as the ninth-best in the country.
The Notre Dame D lost some key pieces and replaced coordinator Al Golden — who is now the Bengals’ defensive coordinator — with Chris Ash, who was most recently a defensive assistant with the Raiders and the Jaguars.
The Irish should still be stout defensively, as they return more than half of last year’s top contributors on that side of the ball.
Miami Hurricanes Betting News, Outlook
No offense has to replace more at QB and receiver than the Hurricanes.
Former Georgia QB Carson Beck has big shoes to fill after Cam Ward’s outstanding season a year ago.
The wide receiver position is a question mark. Miami added CJ Daniels from LSU and Keelan Marion from BYU after last year’s top pass catchers including Elijah Arroyo and Xavier Restrepo went pro.
The offense, which was No. 1 in the country in scoring and yards per game in 2024, still projects to be tough to stop. The Canes boast a stout O-line led by future NFL tackle Francis Mauigoa, and they have three good running backs: the returning duo of Mark Fletcher Jr. and Jordan Lyle, plus transfer CharMar Brown.
We’ll quickly find out how good the running game for Miami will be this year, as Notre Dame’s front seven is always imposing.
Defensively, the Canes have significant room for improvement after struggling in several big games in 2024 (Miami gave up 34 points or more five times). This offseason, they hired Corey Hetherman from Minnesota as DC. Miami has a stud up front in Rueben Bain Jr., and Rutgers transfer Mohamed Toure should solidify the linebacker position, but the secondary had to be completely overhauled via the transfer portal.
If the DBs hold up, Miami could be drastically better on D, but that’s a huge if.
Notre Dame vs. Miami Prediction, Best Bets
If yesterday taught us anything, it’s that trusting an inexperienced quarterback like CJ Carr in primetime is a dicey proposition, especially if that player is on the road in a tough environment.
Yes, I’m referring to Arch Manning and Texas’s brutal offensive showing in Columbus. But there are a number of key differences between what Carr is facing today and what Manning faced in Columbus, starting with the fact that the Miami defense was far from elite a year ago.
Between Notre Dame’s excellent O-line and its playmakers at RB and WR, Carr has enough around him that he just needs to avoid mistakes. It’s also worth noting that for all Riley Leonard brought to the table as a runner last year, there’s a good chance Carr will immediately be a significant upgrade as a downfield passer.
I like Carr’s chances of making just enough plays for Notre Dame to top a Miami team that is A) unproven at receiver and in the secondary and B) has a track record of shooting itself in the foot in close games under Mario Cristobal.
With that in mind, I’m going with the chalk — and the team that appears to have the higher floor, despite the inexperience under center — in this one.
Best bet:
- Notre Dame -2.5 (-120 at FanDuel) — 1 unit
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