by Rod Pearson
Thursday, Sep 17, 2026
Game Time: 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, September 19, 2026
Venue: Notre Dame Stadium, Notre Dame, IN
Where to Watch: NBC
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Point Spread: MSU +29.5, ND -29.5; Over/Under: 52.5 points
Bet365: Point Spread: MSU +29.5, ND -29.5; Over/Under: 52.5 points
BetMGM: Point Spread: MSU +29, ND -29; Over/Under: 52.5 points
Season Record
Michigan State Spartans: 2-0 (0-0) (2nd place, Big Ten)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish: 2-0 (0-0) (FBS Independent)
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Recent Form
Michigan State Spartans: won their last game at home against the Eastern Michigan Eagles 35-7.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish: won their last game at home against the Rice Owls 52-0.
Michigan State Spartans vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish Preview and Analysis
Michigan State is entering this game with a 2-0 record overall and they have a 0-0 record in their conference games too. They are 2-0 in their home games, 0-0 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be on the road for this game. They won their last game against Eastern Michigan 35-7. Alessio Milivojevic was the starting QB and he completed 12/20 passes for 170 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Camryn Edwards led the team in rushing yards with 152 and 2 TDs. Charles Taplin led the receivers with 65 receiving yards on 3 receptions and 1 TD. Devin Vaught and Brady Pretzlaff each led the defense in that game with 8 tackles while Eli Coenen led the defense in sacks with 2. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.
Notre Dame is entering this game with a 2-0 record overall and they have a 0-0 record in their conference games too. They are 1-0 in their home games, 0-0 in their road games, and they are also 1-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at home for this game. They won their last game against Rice 52-0. CJ Carr was the starting QB and he completed 16/20 passes for 253 passing yards, 4 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Jonaz Walton led the team in rushing yards with 48. Jerome Bettis Jr. led the receivers with 61 receiving yards on 2 receptions. Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa and Jaiden Ausberry each led the defense in that game with 5 tackles while Bryce Young led the defense in sacks with 1. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.
Michigan State vs Notre Dame Prediction
The current betting odds have Notre Dame listed as a 29.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Notre Dame has looked good in their games this season with their 2-0 record overall so far. They have looked good on their home field too with their 1-0 home record this season. Meanwhile, Michigan State has looked good in their games this season with their 2-0 record overall so far. They haven't played any road games yet and will be playing their 1st road game of the year here. Michigan State has a new head coach this season and they have been off to a good start. They are coming off a 35-7 win over Eastern Michigan in their last one, but they did have some trouble with Toledo in week 1. They haven't really challenged in either game this season and now they are playing their 1st road game of the year against a ranked team who has goals of winning a National Championship. Notre Dame hasn't really been challenged in their games either, but they do have a power 4 win over Wisconsin and they aren't going to take any teams lightly on their schedule after missing the CFP last season. Notre Dame got off to a slow start against Wisconsin, but they ended up rolling them in the 2nd half and now they are coming off a 52-0 win over Rice last week, finding their groove on offense. Michigan State still doesn't have the talent to compete with Notre Dame and their offense has had trouble putting up points against weaker defenses in both games. The best way to place a bet here is on Notre Dame to cover the spread in this game.
Michigan State Notre Dame Prediction: Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, September 19, 2026 (7:30 pm ET start time) is Notre Dame 45 Michigan State 13.
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NCAAF Betting Trends
Michigan State Spartans: 9-5 ATS as an underdog. 7-2 ATS in road lined games. 7-2 ATS in games played on turf. 6-3 OVER after 1 or more consecutive straight up wins.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish: 17-27 ATS as a favorite of 21.5 to 31 points. 13-19 ATS at home off a home win by 17 points or more. 6-2 OVER against Big 10 conference opponents.
Key Injuries
Michigan State Spartans: J. Hall (LB) Questionable - Elbow.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish: B. Hebert (QB) Questionable - Undisclosed. Q. Porter (WR) Questionable - Knee.
Notable Quotes
“We’ve got to be better fundamentally in the second quarter. We weren’t doing a great job block destruction. We weren’t fitting gaps right. We didn’t tackle well. We went under blocks. And then you know the play they scored on, we practiced. So just a lot of things we need to still really work hard on and improve, and we’re going to coach the living, you-know-what out of our guys.” - Pat Fitzgerald after his team’s win against EMU in their last game.
“His decisions are impeccable. Last week (in a 41-13 victory against Wisconsin) he made the right decision 99% of the time. This week it felt like he was making the right decision, and getting us in the right protections, the right checks, all those different things that he does.” - Marcus Freeman after his team’s win against Rice in their last game.
Starting Lineups
Michigan State Spartans
WR Bullard Jr., Rodney
WR Moore, Fredrick
WR McCray, Chrishon
TE Parachek, Brennan
QB Milivojevic, Alessio
RB Edwards, Cam
FB Coyne, Jay
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
WR Faison, Jordan
WR Gilbert, Micah
WR Graham, Mylan
TE Flanagan, Cooper
QB Carr, CJ
RB Williams, Aneyas
Statistical Leaders
Michigan State Spartans
Passing: Alessio Milivojevic (417)
Rushing: Jaziun Patterson (46)
Receiving: Rodney Bullard Jr. (116)
Touchdowns: Jaziun Patterson (1)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Passing: CJ Carr (492)
Rushing: Aneyas Williams (119)
Receiving: Jordan Faison (135)
Touchdowns: Aneyas Williams (2)
Coaches:
Michigan State Spartans: Pat Fitzgerald (1st season)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Marcus Freeman (6th season)
Rod Pearson
About the Author:
Rod Pearson has been a rabid sports fan his entire life. He grew up in Ontario, and was skilled in both hockey and baseball, and pitched in an elite baseball league for many years. In 2022, Rod decided to hang up his glove, so that he could write about the sports he loves -- but from a gambling perspective. Join Rod every day as he breaks down the games to find the best betting value.
