No. 9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs No. 21 Temple Owls
Who would have though at the beginning of the season that the contest between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Temple Owls at Lincoln Financial Field would be the destination of College GameDay. However, both teams have somewhat exceeded expectations — at least the Owls have — and have a chance to make an impression in the College Football Playoff race.
It’s going to be a much closer game than what Vegas thinks and many are already calling this a must-win for the Fighting Irish as a loss would likely eliminate them from the playoff picture.
Temple is surprisingly unbeaten and the Fighting Irish have fought through the loss of a starting quarterback to a season-ending injury and DeShone Kizer has stepped up to make sure they remain one of the top 10 teams in the country.
Let’s see who can come away with a win here because if Notre Dame does, the playoff is very much alive in their minds and if the Owls win, they can be dubbed a ‘contender’ instead of a pretender.
Details for Saturday’s game are below:
Date: Saturday, Oct. 31
Start Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Stadium: Lincoln Financial Field
TV Info: ABC
Live Stream: WatchESPN app
Radio: For Notre Dame radio affiliates, click here. For Temple radio affiliates, click here.
Ticket Info: For ticket info, click here.
Keys to Victory
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
DeShone Kizer needs to remain level-headed like he has in all big games this season and not let the pressure of a national audience get to him. He has played so well under the spotlight and that must continue here against one of the best defenses in the country.
While Kizer will need to be on his ‘A’ game, C.J. Prosise will need to be relied on to gain yardage against the sixth-best run defense in the nation. If he can get the ground game going against this defense, there will be no problem.
Temple Owls
The offense is not one of the best out there, but it will need to be a little more effective than it has been all year long. Junior quarterback P.J. Walker needs to have his second consecutive solid passing game for the Owls, likely needed closer to 250 yards in this one to have a chance at victory.
As for the defense, slowing down the run game and forcing Kizer to pass more than he’s comfortable with will be key. Temple has one of the best run defenses out there, so it should be emphasized all week long that C.J. Prosise needs to be stopped.
Betting Odds
Point Spread: Notre Dame -10.5
Moneyline: Notre Dame -410, Temple +340
O/U: 49.5
Prediction
I think this game will be one of the best of the season as Temple will come out fired up and ready to prove to the nation that it’s not just a flash in the pan. However, the Fighting Irish have just too much firepower for the Owls and that will come down to the end of the game when a late drive will be needed in order to decide the contest. Notre Dame wins.
Final Score: Notre Dame 31, Temple 24