The USC Trojans (3-3) visit South Bend to face the 13th-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-1) Saturday for a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff (NBC). Below, we look at the USC vs. Notre Dame odds and lines, and make our expert college football picks, predictions and bets.
USC, which is coming off a bye week, has alternated wins and losses en route to its 3-3 record. The Trojans were upset in their most recent outing, falling to Utah 42-26 as 2.5-point home favorites. They won and covered the spread in their last two road games, 37-14 at Colorado as 9.5-point favorites Oct. 2 and 45-14 at Washington State as 7-point faves Sept. 18.
The Fighting Irish are also coming off a bye. Their last game was a 32-29 squeaker at Virginia Tech as a 1-point underdog Oct. 9, rebounding from their first loss of the season. The loss was a 24-13 home setback to now-No. 3 Cincinnati as a 2.5-point dog Oct. 2.
Rankings courtesy of the AFCA Coaches Poll powered by USA Today Sports.
USC at Notre Dame odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Friday at 3:10 p.m. ET.
- Money line: USC +220 (bet $100 to win $220) | Notre Dame -280 (bet $280 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): USC +6.5 (+102) | Notre Dame -6.5 (-125)
- Over/Under (O/U): 58.5 (O: -115 | U: -105)
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USC at Notre Dame odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Notre Dame 34, USC 20
Money line
BACK the FIGHTING IRISH (-280) to WIN 0.2 UNITS.
In this case, a $100 player would wager $56 to win $20.
Notre Dame had a 26-game home winning streak snapped with the setback to Cincinnati. The Irish start a new home winning streak Saturday.
In the head-to-head series, the Irish are on a 3-0 run vs. the Trojans and won the last four meetings at Notre Dame Stadium.
Against the spread
NOTRE DAME -6.5 (-125) is the STRONGEST PLAY – 1½ times your usual wager.
ATS records: USC 3-3 | Notre Dame 3-3
While four of the Irish’s five victories were decided in the fourth quarter or overtime, that won’t be the case here.
USC is average, while Notre Dame has more talent and will be well-rested after its bye week.
The Irish defense will give the Trojans headaches in key situations. Notre Dame has held opponents to 31.9% on third-down conversions to rank 19th in the country.
Plus, the defense has 10 interceptions, tied for fifth in the country. S Kyle Hamilton leads the Irish with 3 of those picks.
Over/Under
BET UNDER 58.5 (-105) to WIN 0.25 UNITS.
O/U records: USC 4-2 | Notre Dame 4-2
The Under is 7-1 in USC’s last eight games following a bye week, while the Under is 21-10-1 the last 32 times Notre Dame returned to the field after a bye.
Notre Dame’s last two home games cashed Under tickets, as did the last two meetings in this head-to-head series
If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, access all of our content at SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW. Please gamble responsibly.
| JOHNNY’S RECORD | W-L | SP | ROI |
| SINCE JULY 8 | 62-42 | 26-14 | +17.636 |
| *–SP: Strongest plays; ROI: Return on investment | |||
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