Notre Dame vs. Ohio State point spread: Picking Fighting Irish vs. Buckeyes

After the college football world turned its eyes to Boulder last week, the attention is now on South Bend. No. 6 Ohio State heads to town to take on No. 9 Notre Dame in a primetime showdown that should have plenty of implications for both sides.

The quarterbacks will take center stage, as well. Kyle McCord is officially the guy for the Buckeyes and Sam Hartman has dazzled through his first four games with the Fighting Irish. It also makes it an intriguing pick as Notre Dame comes in as a 3.5-point home underdog, according to FanDuel.

Quarterback play will be critical for both sides, and Barstool Sports’ Kayce Smith said Hartman could tell us what kind of team Notre Dame is this year.

“The bigger thing for me, Andy, is when we look at Notre Dame — let’s just take, like, the last 10-12 years. Anytime they have made it to the national stage, whether it was the national championship in 2012 or when they made it to the Playoff, they’ve embarrassed themselves,” Smith told Andy Staples on Andy Staples On3. “And the narrative has been, ‘Oh my god, Notre Dame can get it done in the regular season. But when they make it to that big dance, they do something stupid and they kind of show who they actually are.’

“This is one of those games where you look and you say, ‘Okay, if Sam Hartman is this guy and if this offense and this defense has taken that next step forward, and he was that missing puzzle piece.’ And even if they lose to Ohio State but keep it close. But especially if they win — against a team who was in the College Football Playoff last year — that narrative for Notre Dame is done for the rest of the season unless they go out and embarrass themselves against USC or Clemson or somebody else.”

Barstool’s Kayce Smith: Notre Dame has ‘found what they needed’ in Sam Hartman

Notre Dame’s level of competition hasn’t been off the charts with four straight wins over Navy, Tennessee State, NC State and Central Michigan, but Ohio State’s hasn’t been great, either. The Buckeyes beat Indiana in the opener before cruising past Youngstown State and Western Kentucky to bring a 3-0 record into Week 4.

But Smith wondered if the Buckeyes, quite frankly, were still the Buckeyes even though they have the best wide receiver in the country in Marvin Harrison Jr. With how good Notre Dame looks with Hartman at quarterback, she’s picking the Fighting Irish to not only cover the spread, but win the game.

“This team, to me, feels like they found what they needed,” Smith said of Notre Dame. “They found a guy at quarterback who they can trust. He’s a veteran guy. They don’t have questions. When he goes through his progressions, they’re not like, ‘Oh my god, this guy doesn’t know what he’s doing.’ It’s at home. There’s so much hype. Ohio State absolutely destroyed somebody they should’ve destroyed last week. That’s true. They know Kyle McCord is their quarterback. You’ve got Marvin Harrison [Jr.], you’ve got all the talent in the world.

“But are they still the Ohio State of the last few years? I don’t know. I do know that Notre Dame looks really good. And I’m going to take Notre Dame to win. I will probably change my mind by Saturday. But I’m believing in Sam Hartman here.”

Why the offensive lines are critical for both teams

When it comes to the difference in the game, Staples pointed to another area that could determine the winner. Both teams have been known for strong offensive line play over the years, and that might be a deciding factor Saturday night.

Notre Dame’s offensive line, anchored by Joe Alt and Blake Fisher, is considered one of the best in the country. Ohio State’s garnered some criticism to start the season, but the Buckeyes notably lost Paris Johnson Jr. and Dawand Jones to the NFL Draft. That unit looked strong after the opener, though, and Staples said that might be a key to a Buckeyes victory if they can protect McCord.

Still, he’s picking Notre Dame.

“Ohio State’s offensive line was getting criticized earlier this year,” Staples said. “But it’s one of those, they’re kind of nit-picky. We haven’t really seen them against this level of competition yet. Nor have we seen Notre Dame’s offensive line against this level of competition, but we expect it to be good because it’s just historically always been good.

“So I’m going to go with Notre Dame’s offensive line being able to hold up, and then maybe Notre Dame being able to get a little bit of pressure on Kyle McCord and making him nervous. I’ll take Notre Dame, too. I’m taking the Irish. And it’s not just picking the home team. There are a lot of home environments this week, and home field does matter in college football. A lot of home environments this week where the home environment is going to give the [home] team a boost.”