Categories
NCAA Football

Notre Dame Fighting Irish 2013 NCAA Football Gambling Odds & Predictions

2013-14 Football Previews – (Independant) – Fighting Irish

A surprise trip to the BCS National Championship Game has all eyes back on one of college football’s most storied programs, but the Notre Dame Fighting Irish will face a tall order in replicating last year’s feat.

2013 Preview: Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Coach: Brian Kelly
2012 Record: 12-1
Notre Dame gambling odds to win BCS: +5500
Notre Dame Team Page – Player Stats – Roster – 2013 Schedule – >

The Irish won’t be able to catch anyone by surprise this season, and several key performers from a year ago, including Manti T’eo, Everett Golson, and Tyler Eifert, won’t play a single snap in 2013.

Head coach Brian Kelly certainly isn’t allowing that to sway his optimism for this upcoming season, as he included the Jan.

Check out our in-house Handicapper!!! Buy Razor Ray’s College Picks in 2013!

6 national title game on the team’s schedule board.

A lot had to go right for the team to get to 12-0 last year, but there’s no question that coach Kelly has the program back in position to compete with college football’s elite, as Notre Dame should be. A stellar recruiting class means the future remains bright for the Irish.

As for this upcoming season, there could be some growing pains on offense as there will be plenty of new faces in the starting lineup. With Golson out of the picture, the keys to the offense have been handed to senior Tommy Rees. Whether or not Rees can keep the offense humming will decide if the Irish will remain in the national title conversation.

He’s looked solid in spurts as an option of the bench, but producing consistently is a whole other story.

He could have a tough time doing that with Eifert, Theo Riddick, and Cierre Wood all having moved on. The team is loaded with true freshman that have a ton of potential, but this year they’ll lean on guys like George Atkinson, Amir Carlisle, and T.J. Jones, none of whom have shown the ability to move the needle.

It’s unreasonable to expect this group to light up the scoreboard, but if they focus on ball security and limit turnovers that could be enough most weeks.

On the other side of the ball, don’t expect the defense to lose a step this season. That’s a tall order considering they finished second in the nation in scoring defense a year ago, allowing only two rushing touchdowns in the regular season. T’eo drew all the attention last season, but there’s still plenty of talent in town. .[soliloquy id=”82219″]

Louis Nix and Stephon Tuitt will anchor the defense up front, while there are a slew of talented linebackers ready to fill T’eo’s shoes, and the secondary will be filled with plenty of veteran players.

2013-14 Notre Dame Football Prediction: 8-4

There were no shortage of friendly bounces to help the Irish to a 12-0 regular season a year ago. Last year’s schedule makes this year’s look like a cake walk, but it still won’t be easy sledding.

The team is fortunate to get games against Michigan State, Oklahoma, and USC in South Bend, but consecutive road contests against Michigan and Purdue, and their closing game at Stanford will be tough.

Rees is the key player for the Irish this season. He gets to play behind one of the nation’s best offensive lines, but he’ll be feeling a different kind of pressure from day one. He’s been around South Bend long enough that it’s reasonable to think that he can handle the pressure, but there may not be enough talent around him at the skill positions to expect anything but a regression from the offense.

If the Irish don’t make a BCS game the season will likely be considered a failure. It’s tough to imagine them catching the same breaks in back-to-back seasons, especially as they transition new faces into the lineup.

2013 Irish Schedule

8/31 Temple
9/7 at Michigan
9/14 at Purdue
9/21 Michigan State
9/28 Oklahoma
10/5 Arizona State (at Arlington)
10/19 USC
10/26 at Air Force
11/2 Navy
11/9 at Pittsburgh
11/23 BYU
11/30 at Stanford

GRAB OUR BEST Expert CFB Picks for 2013 NCAA FOOTBALL Betting! —–>

By Gino Bottero

Gino is new to CappersPicks.com but NOT new to the online gambling industry.He's got an AMAZING knack for discovering hidden gems when it comes to betting on sports. Stick with him as he predicts when a team will have a letdown! Check Gino out for NBA, NHL, NFL, and MLB betting articles all season long!