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Notre Dame vs Texas preview, prediction, betting odds

By Connor Muldowney

Jan 1, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback DeShone Kizer (14) against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the 2016 Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 1, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback DeShone Kizer (14) against the Ohio State Buckeyes during the 2016 Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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No. 10 Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs Texas Longhorns

This is a monster season opener for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish as well as the Texas Longhorns. Both teams are looking to prove themselves, but the Longhorns are on the outside of the top 25, looking in. If they can somehow pull off the upset against the No. 10 Irish, the rankings will look very different on Monday.

Both sides have quarterback battles to figure out. For Notre Dame, DeShone Kizer and Malik Zaire are going to split snaps in week one, but the former looks like the favorite as he was the starter in 2015.

As for Texas, right now it’s true freshman Shane Buechele who will be getting the bulk of the work. He beat out both Tyrone Swoopes and Jerrod Heard for the job, but could have a short leash in this one.

Here’s how to watch Sunday’s Notre Dame vs Texas game online:

Date: Sunday, September 4
Start Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Austin, TX
Venue: Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium
TV: ABC
Live Stream: ABC Go

Keys to Victory

The key to victory might be on Brian Kelly in this one. If he realizes one quarterback is performing better than the other, he should stick to the hot hand and refrain from making constant switches under center. Nothing can screw up an offense more than lack of continuity.

Contain, contain, contain. Just keeping Kizer on his toes all game long and not letting him get comfortable in the pocket is the must for the Longhorns. If they can stymy the duo of Kizer and Zaire under center, Texas might be eying the biggest upset of week one, arguably. Malik Jefferson is going to have to have a monster game at linebacker for the Longhorns.

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Betting Odds

Despite being the home team, Texas is the 3.5-point underdog in this matchup and the over/under will be hard to judge at 59 points. Definitely a tough game to put money on.

Prediction

Notre Dame will fall behind early by a quick score, but Kizer and Co. will pick up the slack, putting together a couple straight long drives for touchdowns to end the first half. A tie ball game heading into the fourth quarter, Buechele will throw a crucial interception and Notre Dame will score the game-winning touchdown with just under three minutes left.

Final score: Notre Dame 31, Texas 24

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