LUCK OF IRISH? HARDLY
USC HAS TALENT, BUT IT DOESN’T MEASURE UP TO NOTRE DAME ON EITHER SIDE OF BALL
It still feels a little funny, doesn’t it, to take the measure of Notre Dame’s rivalry with USC and find things so clearly tipping in favor of the Fighting Irish?
But USC (+11) at No. 9 Notre Dame (6:30 p.m., Ch. 5) presents a pretty straightforward scenario: The Irish (4-1) should win for a third consecutive time in the Jeweled Shillelagh trophy game and must do so to keep their hopes of a return to the College Football Playoff alive. The Trojans (3-2) — far from the national powerhouse they used to be — are scratching and clawing merely to remain prominent in the Pac-12 picture, much less a broader one.
Gone are the days when the Trojans’ full cupboard of NFL talent — and their speed — made the Irish look like pretenders.
It’s a whole new world in which the Irish have more battle-tested starters, more experience at quarterback and most everywhere else, a defensive front capable of overwhelming USC’s blockers and a coach with far greater job security than his counterpart.
Brian Kelly will continue to chip away at Notre Dame’s first national title in more than 30 years. Clay Helton is just hoping USC’s next athletic director
— a powerless interim is in place — will give him a legitimate opportunity to fight for his job.
‘‘You know what’s in front of us,’’ Kelly told his players after a 52-0 victory last week against Bowling Green. ‘‘Our rival comes here. We know what we need to do. We have to up everything.’’
A solid, steady performance on all fronts should be plenty good enough against the Trojans. The Irish do have to get after freshman quarterback Kedon Slovis, a gifted passer, and keep him from playing pitch-andcatch with an outstanding receiver group led by Michael Pittman Jr. and Tyler Vaughns. Kelly also would love to see his own offense, which will see Jafar Armstrong return to the backfield, establish the run.
Bet on the Irish defense against USC’s Air Raid scheme. And bet on the Irish offense, which isn’t exactly going up against another Georgia in this one. Irish all day, 45-24.
In other Week 7 action:
No. 6 Oklahoma (-11½) vs. Texas
(11 a.m., Fox-32): The Sooners (5-0) are putting up video-game numbers offensively, and the Longhorns (4-1) have underwhelmed on defense. What sort of unexpected looks does defensive coordinator Todd Orlando have up his sleeve for Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts, who hasn’t seen a ‘‘D’’ this big and fast since leaving Alabama? The Sooners’ defense, meanwhile, has its hands full with quarterback Sam Ehlinger and Texas’ running game.
The crowd and scene at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas — half crimson, half burnt orange — never fails to up the ante. The Sooners have been favored in 11 meetings in a row, but they’ve gone down in four of those games. Boomer in a close one.
No. 1 Alabama (-16½) at No. 24 Texas A&M
(2:30 p.m., Ch. 2): Is it sacrilegious to say the Crimson Tide (5-0) have only the third-best defense the Aggies (3-2) have seen this season? Sorry, but that’s a fact. The opportunity is there for quarterback Kellen Mond and his guys to put some points on the board and crank up the intensity at Kyle Field to 11. But the next big play from the Tide’s best-in-the-land passing game is always a heartbeat away. Tide, 35-27.
Florida State (+27) at No. 2 Clemson
(2:30 p.m., Ch. 7): There’s some mystery to the quarterback situation with FSU (3-2), which has former longtime Wisconsin starter Alex Hornibrook at the ready — and coming off a very strong performance against N.C. State — and stronger-armed starter James Blackman apparently available again. The Seminoles are coming around defensively, too, but can they do enough to make Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence uncomfortable? Champs get to 6-0 but fail to cover the huge number.
Michigan State (+10½) at No. 8 Wisconsin
(2:30 p.m., BTN): If the Spartans (4-2) have gotten the bad taste out of their mouths from their frustrating outing last Saturday at Ohio State, there’s no reason they can’t give the Badgers (5-0) fits. Mark Dantonio’s elite defense will try to put the onus on quarterback Jack Coan to make the sort of difficult throws we’re still not convinced he can make. Badgers by only a field goal in a game played in the teens.
No. 10 Penn State (-4½) at No. 17 Iowa
(6:30 p.m., Ch. 7): The motivation is through the roof for both teams, with the Hawkeyes (4-1) coming off a mistake-filled loss at Michigan and the Nittany Lions (5-0) having rallied around a player, Jonathan Sutherland, who received a racist letter that spread like wildfire in the media. These are still quiet Big Ten title contenders. Nits, 30-24.
No. 7 Florida (+13½) at No. 5 LSU
(7 p.m., ESPN): Are the Gators (6-0) the real deal? Defensively, they’re that and then some. But the Tigers (5-0) have a Joe Burrow-led offense that can explode for a home run at any time, and their ‘‘D’’ is nothing to sneeze at, either. Turnovers tell the tale as LSU gets it done 34-13. My favorite favorite: No. 3 Georgia (-23)
vs. South Carolina (noon, ESPN): Kirby Smart has the Bulldogs’ full attention after their plodding first half in a blowout victory last Saturday at Tennessee.
My favorite underdog: Tennessee (+7½)
vs. Mississippi State (noon, SEC Network): Upset alert. Suffering Vols show life at home and become the last Power 5 team to beat an FBS opponent this season.
Last week: 6-1 straight-up, 3-3-1 against
the spread.
Season to date: 28-14 straight-up, 25-16-1 against the spread.