Notre Dame's Opponents: North Carolina St., Louisville offenses begin respective experiments with new/old QBs

From the perspective of learning about Notre Dame’s opponents, Week 1 will be a bit lackluster, at least as it pertains to the clear top tier and on Saturday.

Thursday could provide some insights into the next Irish challenge. Friday might yield some thoughts on one of the trendy upset picks on No. 13 Notre Dame’s schedule.

NAVY (0-1): The Midshipmen opted to take off the week after their transatlantic trek. The Irish (1-0) could have, as well, given the short notice of needing a Week 1 opponent when the Ireland game was scheduled in late 2021, but Marcus Freeman did not want to burn an idle week so early in the season, a scheduling want accommodated by Notre Dame director of athletics Jack Swarbrick.

TENNESSEE STATE: The FCS-level HBCU, coached by Tennessee Titans legend Eddie George, will be perhaps the biggest underdog in Notre Dame Stadium history (3:30 ET, NBC). That betting line should reach the market late this week, and it will exceed six touchdowns, if not seven. Since 2006, the most the Irish have been favored by was 45.5 points against Bowling Green in 2019, a game Notre Dame won 52-0.

NORTH CAROLINA STATE: The Wolfpack has a new quarterback and a new offensive coordinator, but those two have worked together before. So the learning curve will be for the rest of North Carolina State’s roster, with one tune-up before it faces the Irish next week. Favored by two touchdowns at Connecticut (Thursday at 7:30 ET on CBSSN), the combined points total Over/Under of 46.5 suggests North Carolina State may score only 30 points. If the Wolfpack wants Brennan Armstrong in rhythm before Notre Dame arrives, it may need to hang more than that.

CENTRAL MICHIGAN: The Chippewas head to Michigan State (7 ET; FS1) as two-touchdown underdogs.

No. 3 OHIO STATE: The Buckeyes named junior Kyle McCord their starting quarterback, as long expected if the process took longer than expected. McCord will make his leading debut at Indiana (3:30 ET, CBS).

DUKE: The Blue Devils host No. 9 Clemson in Mike Elko’s second season, a primetime standalone game on Monday (8 ET, ESPN). Perhaps the greatest endorsement of Elko’s rapid program-building success is that Duke is only a 13-point underdog against the defending ACC champions. The total of 55.5 hints at a 35-21 result.

LOUISVILLE: Along with the aforementioned North Carolina State game, this may be the best bet to actually learn something about a Notre dame opponent this weekend, again in part because the Cardinals are implementing a new offensive system. Louisville ranked No. 3 in the country last year in average yards before contact against Power Five teams with 3.14 yards per carry. It threw the ball just 28.3 times per game, as a result.

Now new head coach Jeff Brohm arrives with a quarterback from his past in Jack Plummer looking to throw the ball 40 times per game. The personnel shift may be a limiting factor, but Brohm knows no other way.

A trip to Georgia Tech (Friday at 7:30 ET on ESPN) will shed some quick light on the success or failure of this offensive shift. With Brent Key coaching for two-thirds of last season (and then landing the full-time job), the Yellow Jackets put together a strong defense against both the rush and the pass, and now they return 58 percent of the production from that unit, ranking No. 74 in the country.

That returning production may be middling, but it is not a complete rebuild in any regard, so if Brohm finds offensive success on Friday, that could be a precursor of a strong Louisville year. Favored by 7.5, bookmakers expect at least some success from Brohm and Plummer.

No. 6 USC: The Trojans’ defense looked suspect last week, particularly as they gave up a four-play, 19-second 46-yard touchdown drive in the final 30 seconds of the first half against San Jose State. Winning 56-28 looked nice, and a 49-21 score would have been more accurate, but that single drive highlights the continued wonders about USC’s defense.

Running up the score on Nevada (6:30 ET on Pac 12 Network) will not change that perception, even as 38-point favorites.

PITTSBURGH: The Panthers host FCS-level Wofford (3:30 ET, ACCN).

CLEMSON: See Duke.

WAKE FOREST: The Demon Deacons host FCS-level Elon (Thursday at 7 ET on ACCN). Can you imagine a team playing an FCS-level program? So few do it. Ruining the game.

STANFORD: The Cardinal has a rare chance at a win as they travel to Hawaii on Friday (11 ET, CBSSN). The Rainbows played last week, a disadvantage on its own, before then flying from Nashville back to Hawaii, presumably landing midday Sunday (a similar trip to Notre Dame’s weekend travel). And now they play Friday against a Power Five team with a new head coach bringing in an entirely new offense.

Stanford is favored by 3.5, a number that was as high as -8 at some points this summer before the world fully understood how bad the Cardinal should be.

FAVORITES: North Carolina State (-14) at UConn; Ohio State (-30.5) at Indiana; Louisville (-7.5) at Georgia Tech; USC (-38) at Nevada; Clemson (-13) at Duke; Stanford (-3.5) at Hawaii.
UNDERDOGS: Central Michigan (+14) at Michigan State; Duke (+13) vs. Clemson.

THURSDAY
7 ET — Wake Forest vs. Elon on ACCN.
7:30 ET — North Carolina State vs. UConn on CBSSN.

FRIDAY
7:30 ET — Louisville at Georiga Tech on ESPN.
11 ET — Stanford at Hawaii on CBSSN.

SATURDAY
3:30 ET — Tennessee State at Notre Dame on NBC; Ohio State at Indiana on CBS; Pittsburgh vs. Wofford on ACCN.
6:30 ET — USC vs. Nevada on Pac 12 Network.
7 ET — Central Michigan at Michigan State on FS1.

MONDAY
8 ET — Clemson at Duke on ESPN.

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