College Football: 3 Best Bets and Player Props for Indiana at Notre Dame

The first game of the college football playoffs that is set to be played involves the 10-seed Indiana Hoosiers traveling to face the 7-seed Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Hoosiers enter with an 11-1 record, with their lone defeat coming against the 8-seed Ohio State Buckeyes, which was a 38-15 loss in the second-to-last week of the regular season.

As for the Fighting Irish, they also possess an 11-1 record, and their loss was in their second game of the season versus the Northern Illinois Huskies. Since then, Notre Dame has won 10 consecutive games, winning by 14-plus points in 9 of those contests.

Ahead of an in-state matchup to kickstart the college football playoffs, who will emerge victorious to face the 2-seed Georgia Bulldogs in the quarterfinals?

Using the college football odds at FanDuel Sportsbook, let's take a look at the best bets and player props for Friday's showdown between Indiana and Notre Dame that will kick off at 8 p.m. ET.

All college football odds come from FanDuel Sportsbook and may change after this article is published.

Indiana at Notre Dame Betting Picks

Under 51.5 (-105)

On the surface, the over seems like the ideal way to attack this game as Indiana averaged the second-most points per game (40.3) and Notre Dame posted the third-most points per game (39.8) during the regular season. At the same time, both of these programs feature stout defenses that allowed 15.7 points per game or fewer.

While quarterback Kurtis Rourke -- who finished 3rd in QBR (85.7) and 17th in total EPA (62.1) -- has been the primary reason why the Hoosiers earned a spot in the playoffs, the Fighting Irish are first in expected points added per drop back allowed (-0.172) and defensive passing success rate (32.1%). Whenever Indiana lost to Ohio State, they generated only 15 points with the Buckeyes deploying a defense that was third in expected points added per drop back allowed (-0.164) and second in defensive passing success rate (34.3%).

Meanwhile, Notre Dame has become a run-oriented team since their early-season loss, ranking third in expected points added per rush (0.116). That being said, Indiana's defense is 11th in expected points added per rush allowed (-0.086) and 3rd in defensive rushing success rate (34.2%) while also sitting at 1st in early down expected points added allowed (-0.190).

Given the strengths of these defenses, I'll back the under in Friday's pivotal clash between Indiana and Notre Dame.

Elijah Sarratt Under 54.5 Receiving Yards (-114)

In all likeliness, Notre Dame's defense is going to center their attention on slowing down Indiana's aerial attack. The Fighting Irish understand they can't allow Rourke to have success through the air if they want to advance.

Across the 12 games in the regular season, Elijah Sarratt led the Hoosiers in receiving, recording 890 yards and 8 touchdowns on 49 receptions. Along with Notre Dame's impressive metrics against the pass that were mentioned above, they surrendered the second-fewest completions per game (13.8), so the volume likely won't be there for Sarratt to achieve the over.

Before exploding for a season-high 165 yards and 2 touchdowns in the season-finale victory over the Purdue Boilermakers, Sarratt had tallied 40 or fewer receiving yards in three of his last four outings. That includes a 40-yard outing against Ohio State where he caught only three passes.

When factoring Notre Dame's dominant pass defense, taking the under on Surratt's receiving yards seems like the wise choice.

Riley Leonard Over 1.5 Passing Touchdowns (+124)

Even though the Fighting Irish have leaned on Jeremiyah Love and their ground game for most of the season, they'll need quarterback Riley Leonard to be efficient in Friday's contest. Despite the passing volume not being there for Leonard, there is value in taking him to toss multiple touchdowns as he's thrown two-plus touchdowns in four of his last five starts.

Throughout his last five starts, Leonard has attempted 33 or fewer passes, and he finished with multiple touchdown passes in three starts where he had 22 or fewer passing attempts. In the same five-game sample, six of Leonard's nine touchdown passes have come in the red zone, so Notre Dame isn't afraid to put the ball in his hands when they earn scoring opportunities.

On top of that, FanDuel Sportsbook has the Fighting Irish's total points line set at 30.5, showing how much confidence there is with their offense that has put up 31-plus points in eight consecutive games. While Notre Dame rides the back of their rushing attack against Indiana, I believe Leonard will finish with multiple touchdown passes in the red zone to finish off drives.

Check out our latest 2024-25 College Football Playoff printable bracket.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.