2018 Week 5 College Football Picks & Predictions – #7 Stanford @ #8 Notre Dame Odds & Free Pick 9/29/18

2018 Week 5 College Football Picks & Predictions – #7 Stanford @ #8 Notre Dame Odds & Free Pick 9/29/18: The 7th ranked Stanford Cardinal go on the road to Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, IN for a week 5 Big Ten College Football showdown against the 8th ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Kickoff is set for 7:30 PM EST on Saturday, September 29th in what will give the winner a huge statement win for their resume as they look to earn a spot in the College Football Playoff. The odds makers at Bovada Sportsbook have installed Notre Dame as a -5.5 point favorite with the game betting total listed at over/under 53 points. Let’s take a closer look at this premier week 5 College Football betting matchup and release one of our free college football picks to place a bet on.

2018 Week 5 College Football Picks & Predictions – #7 Stanford @ #8 Notre Dame Odds & Free Pick 9/29/18

Game: #7 Stanford @ #8 Notre Dame
Line: Notre Dame -5.5 at Bovada Sportsbook
Total: Over/Under 53
Where: Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, IN
Time: 7:30 PM EST
Date: Saturday, September 29th, 2018

The 7th ranked Stanford Cardinal come into Saturday’s night Top 10 showdown riding high with a perfect 4-0 overall record and are 3-1 against the spread. The Cardinal are coming off of a 38-31 win at Oregon last Saturday where they covered as -3 point favorites. Stanford is now 2-0 in the Pac 12 North Division with a tough game on November 3rd at Washington that should decide the winner of the division.

Head coach David Shaw is in his 8th season as the man in charge of the Stanford program and he is now 77-22 overall in his career. This year’s Stanford team has the potential to be his best team yet and a team good enough to earn a spot in the College Football Playoff.

Stanford’s offense comes in averaging 368.3 yards per game and 6.4 yards per play so far this season. Those numbers aren’t as good as we would have expected with 8 starters back from last year’s squad. Most surprisingly, the running game is only posting 104.3 yards per game and 3.7 yards per carry with senior running back Bryce Love not putting up anywhere close to the monster stats he posted last season so far.

Stanford had to storm back from a 24-7 halftime hole last week at Oregon and ended up winning despite the defense being gashed for 524 total yards. The defense did show up in the 2nd half to limit Oregon to 7 points and has allowed just 356.8 yards per game and 5 yards per play so far in 2018.

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish come into this week’s game with a perfect 4-0 overall record and 2-2 against the spread. The Fighting Irish won 56-27 last Saturday at Wake Forest and easily destroyed the -6 point spread to put the money in their backers pockets.

Head coach Brian Kelly has a well balanced and talented football team this season in his 9th year at the helm. Kelly is 73-34 so far in his tenure as Notre Dame head coach and this 2018 team has the chance to be his best team yet.

Notre Dame is averaging 416.5 total yards on offense per game and 5.8 yards per play. The most impressive part of their attack is the balance. The ground game is posting 184.8 yards per game and 4.2 yards per rush. The passing game is throwing for 231.8 yards per game and an impressive 8.1 yards per attempt.

The Fighting Irish will be playing their 2nd Top 10 team of the season inside Notre Dame Stadium this week. Notre Dame welcomed the Michigan Wolverines into South Bend in their season opener on September 1st and easily won 24-17 in a game that was controlled by the Fighting Irish from start to finish.

#7 Stanford @ #8 Notre Dame Free Pick to Bet On: Notre Dame to cover as a -5.5 point favorite.

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