Notre Dame Football: Will This Be the Week the Fighting Irish Put It Together?

They've got the talent. They've played great for stretches. Will this be the week the Irish put it all together and play four quarters of good football?

The sports books think it is.

They've made Notre Dame a five-point favorite in Saturday's game against Michigan State, and the line has held firm.

I think it's way too high, but what do I know? I thought the game would open with Michigan State anywhere from a three-to-seven-point favorite.

It's going to happen. Notre Dame is going to have one of those games where it soundly beats a good team. Will it be this week?

In the Irish's first two games (USF and @Michigan), it became clear that they were overvalued and failed to cover the spread.

Against USF, they were a 10-point favorite and against Michigan they were a four-point favorite. The Irish lost both of these games.

I've always felt that Notre Dame gets overvalued because it has so many fans and they'll bet for the Irish even if they have to lay a few extra points. I can't say that this is a fact. I don't have the resources to research this over the long haul. It's more of a hunch, but it's proven true so far this season.

And making Notre Dame a five-point favorite over Michigan State just seems like an early Christmas gift if one is betting the Spartans!

Everyone knows that Michigan State has played two cupcakes to open its season and this might explain the spread; The Spartans soundly defeated Youngstown State 28-6 in their opener and last week they shut out Florida Atlantic 44-0.

This week's game in South Bend will be their first real test and they're going to make mistakes.  It's also their first road game.

With the disappointing 0-2 start, the Irish and their fans know the importance of getting a W.  This could also be a factor explaining the spread. The Irish better be ready to play and I believe they will—their season has already reached a crucial point.

What doesn't explain the spread is this: The Spartans have won the last three out of four against the Irish, they finished 11-2 last season, they have a rugged ground game and Kirk Cousins is one of the best quarterbacks in the country.

Some of you might remember watching Alabama dismantle the Spartans 49-7 in last year's Capital One Bowl. You might think they were overrated last year. That was not the case.

Last season, their only Big Ten loss was to Iowa. They finished the year ranked No. 14 and they return enough skilled position players and defensive linemen to win another Big Ten title in 2011.

But although they come into the game with the No. 15 ranking, they still have to prove they deserve it.

And it won't be easy.

In Saturday's game, the Spartans will have to weather the big first quarter charge they are going to see from the Irish. If they can do this and establish the run, I think they'll cover the spread.

I think this game is going down to the wire just as it has the last two seasons.

A Bit of Trivia:

Both coaches, Notre Dame's Brian Kelly and Michigan State's Mark Dantonio, arrived at their present locations from head coaching jobs at Cincinnati.

A great deal of the success Kelly achieved while at Cincinnati (34-6) was based on the the work Dantonio did to bring up the level of football at that school.