Steve Spurrier believes Ohio State could beat Notre Dame 'by three touchdowns'

In the final hours before the national championship game between Notre Dame and Ohio State, former Florida and South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier has made his pick of the winner.

The Head Ball Coach has the Buckeyes winning in a rout.

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“Hopefully it’ll be a good game,” Spurrier said on Another Dooley Noted Podcast. “I sort of feel like Ohio State will blow them out early, and Notre Dame’s not going to score a bunch to get back in it.”

Ohio State is favored by 9.5 points in the game, a big favorite for a national title game. And that’s only a few weeks removed from seeming calamity: a loss to Michigan.

Since then, though, the Buckeyes have been virtually unstoppable. They’ve knocked off a pair of SEC teams and the top-seeded team in this year’s College Football Playoff to reach the title game.

Spurrier thinks those recent experiences have built significant confidence.

“I think Ohio State learned how good they were when they played Tennessee up there and they came out firing,” Spurrier said. “What, 21-0 first quarter or something like that? So if they play like that they’re going to be very difficult for Notre Dame to beat them.”

Spurrier offered his final prediction for the game, seeing it going one of two ways.

“I think Ohio State could win by three touchdowns,” he said. “If it gets to be a real close game Notre Dame may find a way to win. Keep it close.”

Ohio State-Notre Dame playing deep into calendar

One other thing that the Head Ball Coach noted ahead of the game was his dismay that the game is being played so late in the calendar. It’ll be the latest title game in recent memory.

“I think we have dragged it out a little too long,” Spurrier said. “The last game used to be, I think as we said last time, Jan. 1. And of course (then) you had your bowl games and we had that little four-team playoff, and they’d play about the first week in January.

“Now we’re all the way down to Jan. 20. But there will be a bunch of people watching, no doubt about it.”

Ohio State and Notre Dame are set to kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.