Indiana vs Notre Dame Expert Predictions For College Football Playoff First Round
2 days ago
4,637
The first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff begins tonight. Teams have battled all season long and the wait is finally over.
The first game on the schedule will be the Indiana Hoosiers taking on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The game will be played from Notre Dame Stadium as the first-round games are hosted by the higher-ranked seeds.
More news: Best NFL Landing Spots for Heisman Trophy Winner Travis Hunter
Indiana came in ranked No. 10 in the final bracket while Notre Dame came in ranked No. 7. Both sides will be looking to make a statement here, with more of the pressure being on the Fighting Irish.
The Fighting Irish enter this game after posting a record of 11-1 on the year. They’ve been dominant all year and will try to show it once again against the Hoosiers.
Notre Dame just gave head coach Marcus Freeman a new contract extension and this is what they are paying him for. This is a proud program and getting a win here could go a long way.
SOUTH BEND, INDIANA – NOVEMBER 16: Mitchell Evans #88 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish reacts after scoring a touchdown in the first half against the Virginia Cavaliers at Notre Dame Stadium on November 16,… SOUTH BEND, INDIANA – NOVEMBER 16: Mitchell Evans #88 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish reacts after scoring a touchdown in the first half against the Virginia Cavaliers at Notre Dame Stadium on November 16, 2024 in South Bend, Indiana. Notre Dame takes on Indiana in the CFP.
Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images
As for Indiana, they also finished the year with a record of 11-1. However, many see the Hoosiers as a good, not great team.
In the one “tough” matchup that they faced this year, Ohio State, Indiana was blown off the field. They had issues matching up with the Buckeyes physicality so this playoff bracket could be a challenge for them.
But who wins this game? Luckily, Newsweek Sports has you covered with our expert predictions.
Matt Levine: Having this game in South Bend should give Notre Dame an edge within the game but we’ve seen them falter before. Earlier in the year, the Fighting Irish lost to Northern Illinois on this field. However, that all seems like a distant memory at this point.
In my first prediction for this game, I had Notre Dame easily taking care of the Hoosiers. But the more that I thought about it all, Indiana could make this a fun game. I still have the Fighting Irish taking the win but Indiana didn’t come to the College Football Playoff just to make an appearance.
Prediction: Notre Dame 30, Indiana 28
Valentina Martinez: Notre Dame is red hot, positioning the Fighting Irish for a strong victory. Additionally, Indiana’s offense struggled against the defenses of Michigan and Ohio State.
Prediction: Notre Dame 32, Indiana 27
Ricardo Sandoval: The Fighting Irish will win the first and only game on Friday to crush the spirits of Indiana, who surprisingly had a very good season.
Prediction: Notre Dame 30, Indiana 21
For more college football news, head on over to Newsweek Sports.
Um die besten Erfahrungen zu bieten, verwenden wir Technologien wie Cookies, um Geräteinformationen zu speichern und/oder darauf zuzugreifen. Wenn Sie diesen Technologien zustimmen, können wir Daten wie das Surfverhalten oder eindeutige IDs auf dieser Website verarbeiten. Die Nichteinwilligung oder der Widerruf der Einwilligung kann bestimmte Merkmale und Funktionen beeinträchtigen.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
