← Matchups

Michigan State

B1G · 2-0 · power +15.3 · #54
Our side · spreadMSU +29.5 our number ND -24.0 · 5.5 pts from the market our number starts from the opening line and is corrected +2.1 for this matchup by our data on both teams

Notre Dame

IND · 2-0 · power +35.6 · #1
Our side
SpreadMSU +29.5 ours ND -24.0
MoneylineND to win ours 89% · book 96%
Distance from the market 5.5 pts a caution, not a signal
Projected score 14–38 MSU – ND
2026-09-19 · 7:30 PM Notre Dame Stadium · Notre Dame, IN Early season

The books 4 account books · tap any price — the ticket builds at that book

Book MSU spreadND spread OverUnder MSU winND win MSU TT overMSU TT under ND TT overND TT under
DraftKings
FanDuel
BetMGM
ESPN Bet

The gold price is the best available on that side; a gold marks the side our number implies — a read, not a pick. TT is a team total — that team’s own points, not the game’s; columns are empty where no book hangs one. Send to book opens whichever book you tapped, not the one we would have picked. Prices are the books’ own.

Ours vs the market

SpreadNotre Dame -24.0
the marketNotre Dame -29.5
Total51.8
Notre Dame win89% vs 96%

Both percentages are Notre Dame’s chance to win — ours, then the book’s with the vig removed, medianed across the books we track.

What the gap has been worth 10,740 games · 2016–2025

0–3 pts52.0%
3–750.2%
7–1449.3%
14+46.8%

How often the side we favoured covered, by how far our number sat from the market’s. Break-even at −110 is 52.4% — no bucket reaches it, and the rate falls as we disagree more. The further we sit from the market, the worse we have done.

Series Notre Dame lead 44–28–1 · 73 meetings since 1899
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game edge Notre Dame Fighting Irish 107 ranks
Michigan State Spartans #161 rush offense Notre Dame Fighting Irish #54 run defense
Pass game edge Notre Dame Fighting Irish 130 ranks
Michigan State Spartans #136 pass offense Notre Dame Fighting Irish #6 pass defense
Run game edge Notre Dame Fighting Irish 173 ranks
Notre Dame Fighting Irish #1 rush offense Michigan State Spartans #174 run defense
Pass game edge Notre Dame Fighting Irish 160 ranks
Notre Dame Fighting Irish #10 pass offense Michigan State Spartans #170 pass defense
Michigan State Spartans Balanced · 51% run Avg pace Notre Dame Fighting Irish Balanced · 58% run Ball-control
Jonathan Smith · 43-50 Marcus Freeman · 43-12

Ranked by team-unit strength (rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265 D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the 2025 season.

The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above

Who carried each team in 2025
Michigan State Spartans
DL Eli Coenen 7 tkl · 3.0 sacks · 3.0 TFL #21 DL
RB Cam Edwards 250 rush yds · 3 TD · 3 rec #18 RB
DL Kenny Soares Jr. 6 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 1.5 TFL #69 DL
K Liam Boyd 5 FG · 6 XP · 21 pts #17 K
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
QB CJ Carr 492 pass yds · 6 TD · 0 INT #6 QB
K Spencer Porath 3 FG · 12 XP · 21 pts #11 K
RB Nolan James Jr. 48 rush yds · 2 TD · 5 rec #47 RB
WR Jordan Faison 8 rec · 135 yds · 2 TD #79 WR

Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no 2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.

Power breakdown
TeamPowerOffDefRank
Michigan State SpartansB1G +15.3 +6.0 +9.3 #54
Notre Dame Fighting IrishIND +35.6 +22.4 +13.2 #1

Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).

Where the number comes from
Michigan State offense vs Notre Dame defense-7.2 pts
Notre Dame offense vs Michigan State defense+13.1 pts

An efficiency adjustment from season-to-date EPA and success rate applies once teams have played enough games; before then it is 0 and the number is the power rating alone.