Notre Dame football’s playoff hopes can recover vs. Virginia in Week 5
Notre Dame football looks to bounce back from its first loss of the 2019 season as the Fighting Irish host the Virginia Cavaliers in South Bend.
After Notre Dame’s 23-17 loss to the Georgia Bulldogs, the Fighting Irish fell to No. 10 in the AP Top 25. Their College Football Playoff chances fell even further, to almost nothing. However, there is still a long season of football left to be played. And as we know, anything can happen in college football.
Therefore, Notre Dame should rebound as best possible in any case they find themselves in a position to be one of the top four teams at the end of the season. This means the Irish will need to dominate every single one of their upcoming games in order to build the best resume possible.
Additionally, they must hope Georgia goes undefeated and beats Alabama in the SEC Championship Game, which will prove that a five-point loss to the Bulldogs was a “quality loss”.
Notre Dame will welcome the undefeated Virginia Cavaliers to South Bend in Week 5. Virginia is having one of their best starts to a season in years and the best in Bronco Mendenhall’s time as the head coach of the team. Virginia comes into the game ranked at No. 18 and will be looking to break into the top 15 with a win over Notre Dame.
Here’s how to watch this Week 5 matchup between Virginia and Notre Dame:
Date: Saturday, Sept. 28
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: South Bend, Ind.
Venue: Notre Dame Stadium
TV: NBC
Live Stream: NBC Live
Keys to Victory
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are simply a better team than Virginia. However, this alone does not guarantee them a win. In their Week 4 matchup against Georgia, Notre Dame turned over the ball twice and were called for 12 penalties. This sloppiness was one of the biggest reasons they earned their first loss of the year. The Irish need to clean up these areas of the game in order to come out on top.
Consequently, the Cavaliers will be in the best position to win the game if they put pressure on Notre Dame’s quarterback, Ian Book. This pressure will be the most likely way Virginia can force turnovers and gain a few extra possessions on the Irish. Coach Brian Kelly’s defense is overwhelmingly faster and more athletic that Virginia’s offense. Therefore, the extra opportunities to score will undoubtedly be needed.
Betting Odds
Odds courtesy of Bovada
Point Spread: -12.5 Notre Dame
Over/Under: 48.5
Related Story. Notre Dame Football: Game-by-game predictions for 2019. light
Prediction
As laid out in my full season Notre Dame prediction, the Irish will start their winning streak back up in this match against the Virginia Cavaliers. Despite the Cavaliers coming in 4-0, their only real quality win was in Week 1 against Pittsburgh. And, we all know that many of the first games of the year are toss-ups because teams are still working out plenty of kinks. We should expect to see a commanding win from the Irish as they earn another home victory.
Final Score: Virginia 17, Notre Dame 28