No. 10 Notre Dame hits the road on Saturday to take on unbeaten Louisville in NCAA Week 6 action, with the Fighting Irish coming in as the favorites. The Cardinals stayed perfect on the season with a road win over NC State last week, but they are the home underdogs here at moneyline odds of .
Saturday’s game kicks off at 7:30 p.m. ET from L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium in Louisville, and the broadcast will be on ESPN. Below, we’ll take a closer look at the betting lines for Notre Dame vs. Louisville, along with prop bet odds and the latest injury news. Kentucky sports betting is open for all users looking to wager on this game.
Notre Dame tries to stay in CFP hunt against Louisville
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish are 5-1 and coming off a 21-14 win in a tough game on the road at Duke last weekend. The team suffered its first loss of the season the prior weekend, going down 17-14 at home against Ohio State. QB Sam Hartman has thrown just one TD in the last two games, but RB Audric Estime has helped pick up the slack, rushing for 151 yards and two touchdowns in that time to give Notre Dame the offensive push it needed in a gritty battle with Duke.
The Louisville Cardinals kept their undefeated record intact on the road against NC State last Friday, improving to 5-0 with a 13-10 victory that saw far less in the way of offensive fireworks than many were expecting. The team still has the 11th-ranked offense in the nation, averaging 494.8 yards per game. Louisville leaned on its running game early on in the season, with RB Jawhar Jordan averaging 7.7 yards per carry with six rushing TDs thus far.
Louisville faces a tough pass defense
When teams have to air it out, Notre Dame has one of the country’s best pass defenses, allowing only 146.8 yards per game through the air and only three passing TDs so far this season. But the Cardinals have favored more of a run-heavy style with a passing game that’s efficient but somewhat risk-averse. If Notre Dame can get its own offense going early while shutting down Louisville’s running game, an aerial shootout may favor the Irish.
Audric Estime a key to Notre Dame’s ground game
The Notre Dame running back is the nation’s leading rusher, ahead of all other backs from FBS schools with 672 yards so far this season. Estime can break off long runs when given space and has seven rushing TDs on the year even while averaging only about 15.8 carries per game.
Notre Dame vs. Louisville odds and betting lines for NCAA Week 6
Notre Dame vs. Louisville player props
Multiple prop options are available for this game. Some of these props are best college football betting sites. Here’s a look at a couple of key categories:
Passing yards
Notre Dame QB Sam Hartman is averaging 243 passing yards per game, with a completion percentage of 66.2% and 10.1 yards per completion. For Louisville, Jack Plummer has averaged 281.2 yards per game through the air while completing 65.2% of his passes. Notre Dame’s defense has been tough against the pass all season, but if Louisville’s running game doesn’t find its footing early, the Cardinals may have to throw it downfield more than usual.
Rushing yards
Audric Estime is the leading back in the nation, and Louisville will be focused on limiting his production. The Cardinals’ defense has given up 109.6 rushing yards per game on average, but it has yet to face opposition quite like this. Notre Dame has faced a higher caliber of team, but it also has given up 124.2 yards per game on the ground. Louisville’s Jawhar Jordan has averaged 102 yards per game and 7.7 yards per carry thus far.
Notre Dame vs. Louisville injury report
Notre Dame got some good news on the injury front this week, with WR Jayden Thomas, WR Jaden Greathouse and TE Eli Raridon all expected to return to the lineup for this game after dealing with injuries in recent weeks. Receivers Matt Salerno and KK Smith are still out and aren’t expected back any time soon.
Louisville is still a mostly healthy squad, though DB Jaden Minkins is again questionable with an undisclosed injury.