Game Prediction: Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs #16 Syracuse Orange

Notre Dame (4-3) will look to start its second winning streak of the season when it heads east to take on the 16th-ranked Syracuse Orange (6-1). Notre Dame is looking to salvage its season by earning a second win over a ranked opponent, while Syracuse is looking to bounce back from its first loss of the season.

Where: JMA Wireless Dome (Syracuse, N.Y.)
When: 12:00 PM ET
TV: ABC
Line: Syracuse -2.5, O/U 48

IB has broken down the game and it's time to make our predictions.

BRYAN DRISKELL, PUBLISHER

Prediction: Notre Dame 27, Syracuse 16

Notre Dame is a very strange team in so many ways. If you get them at home you seem to have a very good shot, but when the Irish get out on the road they are a much better team. Notre Dame led Ohio State until late in the third quarter, it dominated the now 7-1 and 21st ranked North Carolina Tar Heels on the road, and it earned a neutral site win over BYU.

Syracuse is a solid and well-coached team, and they have very, very good talent in some positions (running back, secondary, linebacker). They figure out ways to win, and Notre Dame seems to have figured out many ways to lose. I think that changes in this game. Syracuse eeked out wins over Purdue (32-29) and Virginia (22-20), and it beat a Devin Leary-less NC State team (24-9), and it blew a 21-10 road lead to Clemson.

I have no reason to be confident about this, but I am. Notre Dame is going to come out and be on top of their game against Syracuse, especially in the trenches on both sides of the ball. Notre Dame should be able to get some movement in the run game and wear the undersized Syracuse front seven down. Quarterback Drew Pyne is going to look more like the guy we saw against North Carolina, and the wideouts are going to have a breakout game against the best secondary they face this season.

Defensively, Notre Dame will slow down the Syracuse ground attack and force Garrett Shrader to beat him from the pocket, which he won't be able to do consistently enough to beat Notre Dame. The crowd will be wild early, but Notre Dame will get on Syracuse early, take the crowd out of the game and put it away late.

VINCE DEDARIO, FOOTBALL ANALYST

Prediction: Notre Dame 37, Syracuse 23

Why do I think that Notre Dame is going to be so successful in this game? Simple, they are on the road. They have played their best brand of football outside the shadow of the Golden Dome and it does not get more non shadowy than inside the Carrier Dome. Yes, it will always be the Carrier Dome to me. I think the offense plays well and Drew Pyne not only looks for people not named Michael Mayer but also connects on those throws. The run game will get traction outside the box and the OL will continue to make strides. I think this game will resemble North Carolina much more than Stanford which will then cause me to be on the fence about the Clemson game.

RYAN ROBERTS, DIRECTOR OF RECRUITING

Prediction: Notre Dame 31, Syracuse 23

Syracuse is having a great season, boasting a powerful run game and very stingy defense. The team has really played hard for head coach Dino Babers. There are, however, matchups that I believe Notre Dame can take advantage of.

Over the last few games, the Irish have been running the ball very successful and will face off against a smaller defensive front of Syracuse. They could have a chance to wear them down like Clemson did last week. The advantage in the trenches is the separator for Notre Dame in this one, a team that has been maddeningly inconsistent this season.

SHAUN DAVIS, RECRUITING ANALYST

Prediction: Notre Dame 24, Syracuse 20

If the Notre Dame team that Dino Babers described shows up on Saturday morning, the Orange will lose this game by two touchdowns. Babers was adamant that Sean Tucker’s lack of carries versus Clemson had been discussed and rectified. Therefore, the main task for the Fighting Irish defense will be shutting down the Orange rushing attack and forcing Garrett Shrader to win the game from the pocket. They did the same thing in Chapel Hill.

ANDREW MCDONOUGH, IB CONTRIBUTOR

Prediction: Notre Dame 23, Syracuse 17

Syracuse is a tough, hard-nosed team and brings an undefeated home record into the matchup with Notre Dame. The Orange will be up for this game and the ACC's top-ranked defense will throw a number of different looks at the Fighting Irish with the aim of confusing Drew Pyne. Syracuse also excels at limiting big plays, ranking first in the ACC in fewest explosive plays allowed.

However, this is still a game that Notre Dame should win - the Irish have a more talented roster, and the Notre Dame defensive line will allow the Irish to control the line of scrimmage, limit the Orange's ability to run the ball, and force Garrett Shrader to win this game with his arm. That was the strategy that Clemson used, and though the Tiger victory was not easy, Clemson won the game in the fourth quarter due to Syracuse's inability to move the ball in the second half (90 yards). Also, close games come down to the little things, and Notre Dame has the advantage in that area - the Irish are 11th in the nation, averaging only 4.3 penalties for 38.1 YPG, while Syracuse ranks 119th, averaging 9.6 penalties for 72.9 YPG.

The Irish special teams also have an edge - though both teams have good kickers, Notre Dame ranks 39th and Syracuse 89th in punt return average, the Irish are 42nd in kickoff return coverage while Syracuse is 94th, ND is 16th in punting average with Syracuse 57th, and of course Notre Dame has the 4 blocked punts.

SEAN STIRES, STAFF WRITER

Prediction: Notre Dame 30, Syracuse 24

My head tells me to take Syracuse. They’ve been far more consistent than the Irish and had Clemson on the ropes before coughing up an 11-point fourth quarter lead. Add to that Notre Dame’s ugly loss to Stanford followed by a lackluster win over UNLV. My gut’s telling me to go with the Irish though. They’ve played their three best games against the three best teams on their schedule away from home and they won two of those three. The pendulum of emotions will swing again this weekend.

IB STAFF STANDINGS

Bryan - 32-6
Vince - 26-12
Ryan - 26-12
Shaun - 24-14
Andrew - 23-15
Sean - 23-15

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