Washington State Cougars (1-6) 4-3 ATS, 3-4 O/U at No. 25 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-2) 2-5 ATS, 4-3 O/U Saturday October 31, 2009 Alamodome (65,000) San Antonio, Texas 7:30 p.m. EST TV: NBC
By Wilson of Predictem.com
Point Spread: WSU +28.5/Notre Dame -28.5
Over/Under: 59
The Washington State Cougars are in need of some serious help this week as they get ready to play one of the most storied college football programs in Notre Dame. The Cougars have been down for the past three or four years and it doesn’t look very promising anytime soon.
Meanwhile, Notre Dame has made great strides towards rebuilding their program. The Irish have continued to show up for big games even though they haven’t won all of them they have turned the corner.
The last time these two teams played was in 2003 at Notre Dame Stadium when the Irish won 29-26 in overtime. However, that was a totally different Washington State squad. This time around will likely be nothing like the close battle in `03.
WSU is coming off of another deflating loss. The Cougs were hammered last weekend by the California Golden Bears 49-17. WSU simply lacks Division 1 talent which results in the weekly beatings. It’s difficult to recruit players to the middle of a wheat field to begin with, but it’s especially challenging when the program is consistently the doormat of the conference.
The Cougars are averaging 15 points per contest and allowing an embarrassing 37 points per game to their opponents. I’m sorry but a team cannot spot their competition 37 points and expect to have a chance to win. On the other side, Notre Dame is averaging 30 ppg and giving up 24.
Washington State is 0-3 SU, 2-1 ATS and 2-1 O/U on the road so far this season. The Cougs are also 1-6 SU, 4-3 ATS and 4-3 O/U as the underdog.
The Fighting Irish are 4-1 SU, 2-3 ATS and 3-2 O/U at home. Notre Dame is 5-1 SU, 1-5 ATS and 3-3 O/U as the favorite.
Notre Dame has been in every game this season and their only losses have been to USC and Michigan, which are two traditionally solid college football programs.
Notre Dame receiver Golden Tate will be the player to watch this weekend as he has recorded three straight 100-yard plus receiving games. He will try to become the first Notre Dame receiver to earn four consecutive 100-yard games since the 1970’s when Tom Gatewood set the record with five 100-yard games in a row.
The line on this game opened at Notre Dame -30 with a total of 59. Most offshore sportsbooks are posting antwhere from UND -27.5 to -28.5 and a total of 60. The Las Vegas Hilton is currently showing the Irish at -27.5 but the Mirage, Planet Hollywood and the Hard Rock hotel sportsbooks are all showing Notre Dame at -28.
The under is 7-3 in Washington State’s last 10 games as the underdog. The over is 9-4 in WSU’s last 13 non-conference games.
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The QB matchup should be a lopsided affair as Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen is clearly the more experienced and tenured of the two especially since Jeff Tuel is a freshman starting for WSU. Clausen has 2050 yards passing, a 65 percent completion rate and has tossed 16 TDs and just two picks.
Well, I have to agree with the oddsmakers on this game as most have made it obvious that this game will be a blowout. At -30 the Irish must feel a bit like the good old days when it was common place to be favored by 20 points or more every week.
Wilson’s Pick: “Notre Dame our Mother!” Irish fans can stop watching Rudy for at least this week as they will have plenty to celebrate after they demolish the Cougars. UND 45, WSU 10. Luck to ya.
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