The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are 10-0 straight up and 6-4 against the spread in their last 10 games as the betting favorite. The Fighting Irish will try to keep that winning streak going this Sunday as a road favorite against the Texas Longhorns at 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
Notre Dame is a 3.5-point road favorite for Sunday night at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. When these two teams met in South Bend last season, Notre Dame blew the Longhorns out 38-3.
The Fighting Irish overcame a slew of injuries in 2015 to put themselves in the hunt for a playoff spot with a 10-1 SU and 7-4 ATS record through the first 11 games of the season. But the team's deficiencies on defense were exposed in its final two games of the year, giving up 38 points to Stanford and 44 points to Ohio State.
The offense that has averaged 33.5 points per game over the last two seasons should once again be excellent in 2016, but the defense could prevent Notre Dame from being one of the nation's elite teams this year.
Over their last 10 road games, the Fighting Irish are just 3-7 SU and 5-5 ATS per the OddsShark College Football Database.
Betting Line/Total: Notre Dame -3.5 / 59 Points
Trend: The total has gone OVER in five of Texas' last seven games at home.
Trend: Notre Dame is 10-0 SU in its last 10 games as a favorite.
The Longhorns have been mired in mediocrity over the last few seasons, failing to reach 10 wins since going 13-1 in 2009 and recording a losing season last year with a 5-7 SU and ATS record.
Sunday's total is set at 59 points. The OVER is 10-4 in Notre Dame's last 14 games as a favorite of 3.5 points or less and 5-2 in Texas' last seven games at home.
Texas brought in a new offensive coordinator this offseason in Sterlin Gilbert to bring a more fast-paced offense to the program, and could turn to freshman dual-threat quarterback Shane Buechele to run it. The Longhorns are 2-8 SU and 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games as a betting underdog.
This is an interesting matchup for both of these teams. If Texas' new offense can come storming out of the gate, it could give Notre Dame's inexperienced defense some trouble. The Fighting Irish may have the edge in depth coming into this game, but they aren't likely to win by 35 again, like they did against Texas last year.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Texas Longhorns
When: Sunday, September 4, 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: Memorial Stadium, Austin, Texas