Notre Dame vs. Stanford, Picks, Odds, Preview and Prediction, Saturday, Nov. 29, 2025
Use Code SSWC We've got late-night, West Coast action in this Notre Dame vs. Stanford prediction. The No. 9 Fighting Irish (8-2) are looking for a victory to stay in the College Football Playoff mix. Stanford (4-7) just wants to end the season on a good note with interim coach Frank Reich, who took over for Troy Taylor in April. The Cardinal have lost three of four games and will finish the season out of bowl contention. Notre Dame is a 32.5-point favorite and the total is 49.5. Last season, the Cardinal were thrashed at South Bend by the Irish, 49-7. Check out more college football action this weekend and in other sports at Stat Salt.
A must-win situation for Notre Dame
The good news is that Notre Dame is not in a look-ahead situation. This is the last game for a team that started the season with tough losses to Texas A&M (41-40) and Miami-Fla. (27-24) and then won nine straight games. That includes an easy win over Syracuse last week, 70-7. Heisman candidate Jermiyah Love led the way with 171 yards and three touchdowns on just eight carries. The Orange were decimated in terms of injuries and it showed. Head coach Marcus Freeman could empty his bench early, considering the Irish rushed for 329 yards and had just 15 passing attempts for 67 yards.
QB C.J. Carr is having a strong season with 2,536 yards passing, 22 TDs and six picks. He is overshadowed by Love, who had 1,306 rushing yards and 17 TDs (7.1ypc). Love also has 26 catches for 274 yards and three TDs. Jordan Faison leads the Irish with 46 catches for 572 yards with three scores.
The Notre Dame defense is strong, which is not surprising considering Freeman spent four years at Cincinnati as a defensive coordinator. and played linebacker in the NFL and at Ohio State. Defensively, they rank 22nd in yards allowed per game (22nd) and they are 13th against the run (100ypg). The Irish rank 7th in scoring (41.4ppg) and 19th in rushing yards per game (205ypg).
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Key Injuries for Notre Dame:
- K Nick Burnette (20 of 22, XP, 5 of 6 FG) is questionable with a hip injury.
- S Tae Johnson (hand) is questionable. Has 48 tackles and four INTs
Stanford playing out the string
Frank Reich would love to end the season with a win over the rival Irish. The former Colts' head coach will give up his job to another candidate, considering they are not going to a bowl game. The Cardinal did beat their rival last week, Cal, 31-10 as a 4.5-point underdog. Cal had won four straight in the "Big Game" and committed 13 penalties and lost three fumbles. Stanford took advantage thanks to Micah Ford, who had 150 yards rushing and a TD. QB Eljiah Brown was ordinary with 123 yards passing (10 of 20) with a TD pass.
“We want to finish strong,” Reich said. “So we’re going to prepare to win, prepare to play to win. You know, I know this: We’ve played a very tough schedule this year. We played a lot of really good football teams. This is just going to be the next one, and so we are not going to get too caught up in their tradition and who they are."
Defensively, Stanford stopped the run, allowing just 12 yards against Cal last week. That's their strength as they allow just 113.1 yards per game on the ground (22nd) and 284.5 yards per game in the air (126th). The run defense will certainly be tested in this one, but they'll need that because their offense is averaging just 305.1 yards per game (129th).
Ford leads the ground attack with 643 yards rushing and four TDs. Brown is completing 62.2% of his passes for 625 yards with three TDs and one pick. Former starter Ben Gulbranson was benched in early November and was replaced by Brown after throwing two pick-sixes against Pitt.
Key Injuries for Stanford:
- LB Wilfredo Aybar (undisclosed) is questionable. Has 20 tackles.
Notre Dame vs. Stanford Spread Pick
Pick and Prediction for Notre Dame vs. Stanford
- Stanford +32.5 (5 units)
The thing I like about this Stanford team is that they stop the run. Their only chance to win and compete is to win a low-scoring battle, but their team will be up for the last game against the most famous program in college football. The pressure is on Notre Dame to win this game and win it handily. That won't happen here as the Cardinal will play hard and for Reich in his last game. Talent will win out, but the Irish won't cover the big number on the road.
Over/Under Pick for Notre Dame vs. Stanford
- Under 49.5 (4 units)
I know Stanford is not explosive offensively and that their defense can keep them in this game. They aren't going to win a shootout with Notre Dame or most teams, so they need to run the ball and move the chains in the passing game, while possessing some clock and shortening the game. The Irish have the tough defense and it shows in their totals as of late, as they've gone under in five of their last six games.
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