No. 24 Louisville at Notre Dame (-3) 3:30 pm NBC
Daniel: I’m a big fan of the home favorite pick, but I think Louisville has a lot going for itself right now. I like the Cardinals’ edge in coaching in this matchup, they’re playing pretty good football with two out of three wins and just a tight loss to FSU in that span and their offense is clicking with at least 30 points in the last three games. Notre Dame, on the other hand, hasn’t been as impressive. The Irish have lost three of four with only a win over Navy during that stretch. Their two wins before this rough stretch were very close ones against mediocre squads as well. They’re not playing great football and I think Louisville can go into South Bend and pull off the mild upset. Pick: Petrino 31-30
Houston: Notre Dame’s season went down the tubes after that loss to Florida State. Since then, the Irish have looked uninspired and unprepared in every game. I don’t expect that to change this week. Louisville has a strong passing attack led by sophomore quarterback Will Gardner, and I think they’ll have an opportunity to hit some big plays against a Notre Dame secondary that has looked pedestrian as of late. Oh, and did I mention that Louisville is coming off of a bye week. Cardinals in a rout. Winner: Louisville 38-23
Reed: This is just a brutal game to pick. Notre Dame is coming off an inexplicable home loss to Northwestern and Louisville hasn’t been great on the road. The Irish defense is terrible and is the big reason they’ve dropped three of four. Louisville boasts the 10th ranked defense in the land and will put tons of pressure on Everett Golson…but the Irish have more talent and surely won’t drop two straight at home…will they? Lost in all this: Brian Kelly’s stock is falling – keep that in mind as his name comes up in connection with various coaching jobs. Winner: Irish 28-24
Tony: Minus their starting QB, Louisville will struggle with an Irish team desperately needing to put the past three weeks behind them. Give me the Irish to cover. BTW, RTI guys is this one of the best games you could find? Sheesh…What a terrible week! Winner: Irish 24-20
