Notre Dame is a way-early underdog in one of its games this year and favored in four others.
FanDuel released Thursday five early odds for games on Notre Dame’s schedule and some national championship futures.
Wisconsin, which plays Notre Dame Sept. 25 at Chicago’s Solider Field, opened as a four-point favorite in that game. Odds for the Oct. 30 Notre Dame vs. North Carolina game are not yet out. FanDuel set Notre Dame as a nine-point favorite in its opener at Florida State (Sept. 5), a three-point favorite over Cincinnati (Oct. 2) and USC (Oct. 23), and a 23-point favorite over Navy (Nov. 6).
Odds for Notre Dame’s games against Toledo (Sept. 11), Purdue (Sept. 18), Virginia Tech (Oct. 9), Virginia (Nov. 13), Georgia Tech (Nov. 20) and Stanford (Nov. 27) have not been released either.
The Irish are +6000 to win the national championship, tied with LSU, Wisconsin, Miami and North Carolina for the 13th-best odds. Two of those teams are on their 2021 schedule.
Alabama (+250) is the betting favorite to win the national championship, followed by Clemson (+400), Georgia (+450), Ohio State (+650) and Oklahoma (+800).
Hamilton Appears On Kiper’s First 2022 Big Board
ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. released his first top 25 prospects for the 2022 NFL Draft on Thursday.
Unsurprisingly, Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton is high on the board. Kiper ranks him as the No. 8 player in the draft and the top safety. He’s the fifth-ranked defensive player, behind Oregon edge player Kayvon Thibodeaux (No. 1), LSU cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. (No. 2), Texas A&M interior lineman DeMarvin Leal (No. 5) and Alabama linebacker Christian Harris (No. 6).
“Hamilton's size and speed jump off the film; he's impressive physically,” Kiper wrote. “He had 63 total tackles, an interception and 4.5 tackles for loss last season, after he picked off four passes as a freshman. He can play close to the line and stuff ball carriers or play deep as a center fielder, where he has the speed to make plays on the ball. I'm excited to see him next season.”
The 6-4, 219-pound Hamilton was a consensus All-American as a sophomore in 2020. He earned first-team honors from the FWAA and AFCA.
Notre Dame's Place In Athlon Sports’ Top 25
Athlon Sports pumped out its top 25 ahead of most other magazines, and with a twist.
The outlet’s ranking, released Wednesday, aims to predict where teams will finish the 2021 season. It’s less of a preseason top 25 than it is a predicted postseason one. Notre Dame came in at No. 12.
“Coach Brian Kelly has established a strong foundation in South Bend and another season of at least 10 victories should be within reach,” Athlon’s Steven Lassan wrote. “However, the big prize — the CFB Playoff — won’t be easy to attain again unless the offense quickly reloads behind Wisconsin transfer Jack Coan at quarterback (at least until Tyler Buchner is ready) and four new starters are identified up front.
“The Fighting Irish return All-America candidate Michael Mayer at tight end but need more playmakers to step up on the outside at receiver. Provided the line stabilizes, the one-two punch of Kyren Williams and Chris Tyree at running back should be the strength of the offense.
“The hire of Marcus Freeman to replace Clark Lea as defensive coordinator should ensure this unit doesn’t miss a beat. Safety Kyle Hamilton headlines the key returnees for Freeman, and there’s good depth, experience and talent in place to overcome some of the personnel departures up front and at linebacker.
“A manageable ‘21 schedule features a neutral-site matchup against Wisconsin in Chicago, home games against Cincinnati, USC and North Carolina and road treks to Florida State, Virginia and Stanford."
Kelly High Up In CBS’ Top Five Coaches
Another ranking of the 130 Football Bowl Subdivision head coaches placed Kelly in the top five. CBS’ staff poll ranked him fifth, behind Ohio State’s Ryan Day (No. 4), Oklahoma’s Lincoln Riley (No. 3), Clemson’s Dabo Swinney (No. 2) and Alabama’s Nick Saban (No. 1).
“There was once a time when fans could complain that Notre Dame was constantly overrated, and they were right,” CBS’ Tom Fornelli wrote. “Thanks to Kelly, it's no longer the case. Kelly has led the Irish to two CFP berths in the last three years, and he also led them to the ACC Championship Game in their only season as a member of the conference. There's still a bit of a gap between the Irish and the elite programs, but that gap seems to narrow slightly with each passing season.”
The Athletic’s Stewart Mandel and Bruce Feldman each had him ranked third among their respective top 25 coaches earlier this spring.
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