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Notre Dame opens as home underdog vs. Clemson

On3 imageby:Patrick Engel•10/30/22•

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DJ Uiagalelei and Clemson will play at Notre Dame on Nov. 5. (Matt Cashore-Pool/Getty Images)

Notre Dame football is a home underdog for the first time in more than a year. No. 5 Clemson – the next Notre Dame Stadium visitor – is a 4-point favorite over the Irish, per Circa Sports’ Week 10 opening lines.

The last top-10 team to visit South Bend was also a favorite. No. 9 Notre Dame was a 2-point underdog against No. 7 Cincinnati on Oct. 2, 2021. The Bearcats won 24-13, ending the Irish’s 26-game home winning streak.

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Clemson (8-0, 6-0 ACC) has won 14 straight games, a streak that dates to October 2021. The Tigers’ last loss was a 27-17 defeat at Pitt on Oct. 23 of last season. They most recently beat Syracuse 27-21 Oct. 22 and were off in Week 9. The victory over the then-No. 14 Orange is one of three against teams ranked in Sunday’s Associated Press Top 25.

Notre Dame beat then-No. 16 Syracuse 41-24 on the road Saturday to move to 5-3 this season. The Irish have won 26 straight regular-season games against ACC opponents. Eleven of those have been on the road.

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This is the third time in 2022 Notre Dame is an underdog. At kickoff, the Irish were getting 17 points at Ohio State in Week 1 (per Caesars Sportsbook) and 2.5 points Sept. 24 at North Carolina. They are 2-0 vs. the spread as an underdog, with an outright win over the Tar Heels. Notre Dame has been a favorite six times.

Notre Dame received points in both voter-based polls Sunday after beating Syracuse. Two Top 25 opponents are left on the schedule: Clemson (home, Nov. 5) and No. 9 USC (road, Nov. 26). North Carolina (7-1, 4-0 ACC) moved up one spot to No. 21, while Ohio State (8-0, 5-0 Big Ten) stayed at No. 2. Syracuse (6-2, 3-1 ACC) dropped to No. 22. BYU – ranked No. 16 when the Irish beat it Oct. 8 – lost to East Carolina 27-24 Friday to drop to 4-5 this year.

Notre Dame and Clemson last played Dec. 19, 2020 in the ACC Championship Game. The Irish lost 34-10. They won the last meeting in South Bend 47-40 in double overtime on Nov. 7, 2020. Clemson was the No. 1-ranked team at the time. The Tigers lead the all-time series 4-2.

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