The No. 9 Notre Dame Fighting Irish head down to Florida State with a new quarterback ready to start the 2021 campaign. Emotions will be high for the Seminoles in the opener as they honor Hall of Fame coach Bobby Bowden who passed away this summer. Sunday’s kickoff at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida, is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and will be televised on ABC.
The Irish have taken the last two meetings, including a 42-26 home win last October and a 42-13 home win in 2018. Florida State leads the series 6-4 all-time, and this is just the third ever game between the team at Doak Campbell. FSU won the most recent, 31-27 in 2014, while the Irish won in Tallahassee in 2002.
Irish Turn to Coan
Graduate transfer Jack Coan is the starting quarterback for the Irish after four seasons at Wisconsin, where he made 18 starts. Coan completed 68 percent of his passes for the Badgers with 23 touchdowns, eight interceptions, and 3,278 yards. He was injured over the summer of 2020 and lost his starting job to Graham Mertz.
Running back Kyren Williams is a big piece for the Irish, especially since Coan isn’t as mobile as former quarterback Ian Book. Williams was a workhorse in 2020 with 13 touchdowns, a 5.3 average, and 211 carries as he topped the 100-yard mark six times. He gashed the Seminoles last October for 185 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries.
The Irish had a top-15 offense last season, and FSU allowed over 36 points per game in 2020. Meanwhile, the Notre Dame defense gutted the Noles’ offensive line and racked up nine tackles for loss and four sacks last year. The Irish defensive line starts two graduate students, a senior and a junior, while they also have three returning upperclassmen at linebacker.
New Look Noles Need A Big Win
The last couple of seasons have been rough for a Florida State program used to winning double-digit games and playing in a January bowl game. With first-year head coach Mike Norvell they were 3-6 last season, 2-6 in ACC play. That followed a season of 6-7 in which Willie Taggart was fired mid-season, and Florida State hasn’t been over .500 since Jimbo Fisher left.
Norvell brought in 13 transfers this season after FSU had the youngest roster in FBS play last season. Among the newcomers is quarterback McKenzie Milton who started at Central Florida until suffering a knee injury in 2018 and enduring a setback in 2019. Norvel hasn’t named the starter yet after a camp competition between Milton and last year’s starter Jordan Travis.
The defense is also improved for the Noles, but they have a stout offensive line to face on Sunday. Senior defensive end Jermaine Johnson will likely line up against a freshman on the Irish offensive line and could get to Coan often. Fabien Lovett and Dennis Briggs Jr are key to the FSU defense keeping the Irish in check as the Noles allowed 66 percent passing completions last year.
Betting Analysis
- Notre Dame -7 (-110) spread. -290 money line
- Florida State +7 (-105) spread. +235 money line
- Total 55.5. Over -110. Under -110
Expect the Noles to come out firing early and feeding off the crowd’s adrenaline and the emotions with the Bowden tributes. If Notre Dame can tune out that noise and distraction, they have a clear talent and coaching advantage. Coan is in a big spot, but the defense is there to keep him out of trouble and make it 20 straight wins against ACC opponents.
Betting Pick: Irish -7
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