Notre Dame football score predictions: Fighting Irish vs. Indiana national picks

Blue & Gold compiled 20 individual picks across nine national outlets for Friday’s first-round College Football Playoff game between No. 7 seed Notre Dame (11-1) and No. 10 seed Indiana (11-1). All but one of them picked the Fighting Irish to win the football game.

Here are all of the national picks.

Bleacher Report: Notre Dame 24, Indiana 16

David Kenyon: This entire matchup, for me, comes down to how well Indiana’s offense plays against Notre Dame’s defense.

During the regular season, IU’s toughest opponents were Michigan and Ohio State. The offense mustered 246 and 151 yards, respectively, in that 20-15 victory against U-M and the 38-15 loss at Ohio State.

Notre Dame, meanwhile, has given up more than 16 points only twice all season.

The bright side for Indiana is one of those moments happened in ND’s most recent game, a 49-35 win at rival USC to close November. But that’s not exactly a trend tilting in IU’s favor.

I’ll trust this sturdy ND defense to contain IU’s offense in a chilly, low-scoring game to start the weekend.

The Sporting News: Notre Dame 28, Indiana 24

Bill Bender: An in-state battle kicks off the College Football Playoff. Indiana allowed 2.5 yards per carry this season, and that run defense will be tested by the Irish trio of Riley Leonard (721 yards, 5.8 ypc.), Jeremiyah Love (949 yards, 7.1 ypc.) and Jadarian Price (651, 7.3 ypc.). Kurtis Rourke will test an opportunistic Notre Dame secondary, and the Hoosiers will need the running game to be in order, too. It’s been a dream season for Indiana coach Curt Cignetti. Will it continue against the Irish? Notre Dame covered in each of its last seven games, but this one stays tighter. 

USA Today: Notre Dame 28, Indiana 20

Eddie Timanus: Notre Dame’s flat performance against Northern Illinois in Week 2 now seems like a lifetime ago. The Fighting Irish have had just one somewhat close call since then, so it’s fair to wonder how they’ll handle a tense game-ending sequence. The Hoosiers could only hang with Ohio State for about a quarter-and-a-half, though they did manage to stave off that same Michigan team that made the Buckeyes miserable a few weeks later. We’ll take the Irish on their home field, but this should be a fun ride.

The Associated Press: Notre Dame 28, Indiana 17

Eric Olson: An idyllic setting for the start of the 12-team playoff era: Notre Dame Stadium for a matchup of two Hoosier State teams that traditionally have lived on opposite ends of the college football world.

The upstart Hoosiers didn’t fare so well on the their biggest stage of the regular season, losing by 23 points at Ohio State. The spotlight will be even brighter in South Bend. Indiana can win if the Notre Dame defense that allowed 35 points and 577 yards to Southern California shows up and if the Hoosiers’ top-ranked run defense keeps Riley Leonard, Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price under control. Hard to see both of those things happening.

On3

Andy Staples: Fighting Irish
Ari Wasserman: Fighting Irish

FOX Sports

Laken Litman: Fighting Irish
RJ Young: Fighting Irish
Michael Cohen: Fighting Irish

CBS Sports

Dennis Dodd: Fighting Irish
Tom Fornelli: Fighting Irish
Chip Patterson: Fighting Irish
Shehan Jeyarajah: Fighting Irish
Jerry Palm: Fighting Irish
Brandon Marcello: Fighting Irish
Richard Johnson: Fighting Irish

Note: Patterson, Jeyarajah, Marcello and Johnson are all picking Indiana to cover the 7.5-point spread.

Athlon Sports

Steve Lassan: Fighting Irish
Kyle Wood: Fighting Irish

Pro Football Focus

Max Chadwick: Notre Dame 31, Indiana 21
Indiana’s run defense has been spectacular all year, but it also hasn’t faced an attack as lethal as Notre Dame’s. The Fighting Irish rely on their run game and its pass rush to squeak out a win in South Bend in the battle for Indiana. Notre Dame moves on to play Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.

Dalton Wasserman: Indiana 27, Notre Dame 24
The Hoosiers need to accomplish three things in this game if they want to win: contain the run, force Riley Leonard beyond his first read and pass protect against blitzes. I’ll take them to do just enough of all three to get a victory