Playing at home has been a distinct advantage for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who have won 19 consecutive contests in South Bend. The streak matches the second-longest in program history, nine behind the all-time mark of 28 straight home victories from 1942-50. The Fighting Irish attempt to make it 20 in a row when they host the South Florida Bulls on Saturday. Kickoff from Notre Dame Stadium is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. ET.
Notre Dame began its first season as a member of the ACC with a 27-13 home triumph over Duke last Saturday. USF also began the 2020 season with a victory, as it defeated The Citadel 27-6 at home. The Fighting Irish are 25.5-point favorites in the latest Notre Dame vs. South Florida odds from William Hill, while the over-under for total points scored is 48. Before locking in any South Florida vs. Notre Dame picks, be sure to see the college football predictions from SportsLine's Mike Tierney.
A national sportswriter whose work appears in the New York Times and Los Angeles Times, Tierney has covered college football of all levels for decades. He has emerged as one of SportsLine's leading analysts in all sports.
What's more, he has had a particularly keen sense for the tendencies of these teams. Tierney is a combined 11-1 in his last 12 college football picks involving Notre Dame and South Florida. Anyone who has followed him is way up.
Now, Tierney has studied Notre Dame vs. USF from every angle and has revealed his picks over at SportsLine. Here are the college football odds from William Hill and trends for USF vs. Notre Dame.
- Notre Dame vs. South Florida spread: Fighting Irish -25.5
- Notre Dame vs. South Florida over-under: 48 points
- Notre Dame vs. South Florida money line: Fighting Irish -2400, Bulls +1200
- ND: The Fighting Irish are 5-1 against the spread in their last six games as the favorite
- USF: The Bulls are 5-1 ATS in their last six contests against ACC teams
Why Notre Dame can cover
Ian Book completed 19-of-31 pass attempts for 263 yards and a touchdown against the Blue Devils last Saturday. He led the Fighting Irish on two scoring drives of more than 80 yards, including a 96-yarder that resulted in a 1-yard touchdown run by Kyren Williams early in the second quarter. Book needs three TD passes to move ahead of Jimmy Clausen (60) and pull even with Tommy Rees (61) for second place on the school's all-time list.
Book, who ran for 12 yards versus Duke, also needs just five more rushing yards to overtake Tom Clements (1,070) for third-most by a quarterback in Notre Dame history. The Fighting Irish have been highly successful against ACC teams since making a scheduling agreement in 2014 to play five games per year versus the conference, going 23-7 in that span. Over the last three years, Notre Dame has lost just once in 15 contests versus ACC squads.
Why South Florida can cover
The Bulls, who reside in the American Athletic Conference, received some solid performances on both sides of the ball to help make Jeff Scott's head-coaching debut a success. The former co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach at Clemson watched his ground game amass 302 yards and was able to get a look at three different quarterbacks while his defense created three turnovers. Kelley Joiner led South Florida's rushing attack with 87 yards and a touchdown on only eight carries.
Fellow sophomore Johnny Ford gained 71 yards on nine rushes while senior signal-caller Noah Johnson ran seven times for 49 yards and a score. Johnson made only four pass attempts, completing three for 24 yards, and sophomore Jordan McCloud was 11-of-16 for 68 yards and a TD while freshman Katravis Marsh was 4-of-5 for 10 yards. Junior linebacker Antonio Grier Jr. was a force for the Bulls in their opener with 10 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.
How to make Notre Dame vs. South Florida picks
Tierney is leaning over on the total, and he's also found a critical x-factor that makes one side of the spread a must-back. You can only get the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins South Florida vs. Notre Dame? And which critical x-factor has Tierney jumping all over one side of the spread? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Notre Dame vs. South Florida spread to jump on Saturday, all from the expert who's on an 11-1 run picking these teams, and find out.
