The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Texas A&M Aggies will each be playing their first game of the season on Saturday, August 31st. This game will be played at Kyle Field in College Station and televised on ABC.

ABC will be covering the season opener between the Texas A&M Aggies and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, set to kick off at 7:30 ET from Kyle Field in College Station. This will be the first game of the season for both teams, with the Aggies coming in as the slight -2.5-point favorites at home. The money line odds are +116 for Notre Dame and -143 for Texas A&M, and the over/under line is currently at 46.5 points.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs Texas A&M Aggies

Notre Dame Records And Recent Play

Texas A&M Records And Recent Play

Notre Dame Offense Breakdown

Notre Dame’s offense was effective last season, averaging 39.2 points per game, which ranked 10th in the country. The Irish were strong in the running game, finishing 7th in rushing yards per attempt and 32nd in rushing yards per game (186.4). In the passing game, they averaged 246.5 yards per game, and their 9.2 yards per pass attempt was 7th best in college football last season. The Irish also ranked 24th in third down conversion percentage (44.5%).

Heading into this season, Notre Dame has added quarterback Riley Leonard, who threw for 1102 yards last season at Duke. Leonard has the 10th best odds to win the Heisman Trophy among all quarterbacks (+2066). The Irish also return Jeremiyah Love in the backfield and have added Jake Tafelski from Central Michigan. Kris Mitchell, who had 1118 receiving yards and seven touchdowns last season, joins the team at wide receiver.

Texas A&M Offense Breakdown

Conner Weigman, who threw for 979 yards and eight touchdowns last season, is the 11th best odds to win the Heisman Trophy this season (+2266). Texas A&M’s offense was 23rd in the country in scoring last season, putting up 33.3 points per game. The Aggies were effective on third down, converting 43.4% of their opportunities (34th). Per game, they averaged 270.8 passing yards (27th) and 136.3 rushing yards (81st).

Amari Daniels, who rushed for 532 yards and six touchdowns last season, returns to the backfield, along with transfer E.J. Smith from Stanford. The Aggies also added Jabre Barber from Troy, who had 994 receiving yards last season. Texas A&M will look to improve their rushing attack this season, while also maintaining their success in the passing game.

Notre Dame Team Defense

Notre Dame’s defense was one of the best in the country last season, allowing just 15.9 points per game, which ranked 6th nationally. They were particularly strong against the pass, giving up only 157.3 passing yards per game (15th). The Irish also excelled in limiting opposing quarterbacks to a passer rating of just 59.9, the 3rd lowest figure in college football. Against the run, they finished 39th in the nation, allowing 120.1 rushing yards per game.

Notre Dame Team Defense

Opposing quarterbacks had a passer rating of 84 against the Texas A&M defense last season, which ranked 58th in the nation. The Aggies’ defense as a whole allowed 22.1 points per game, placing them 29th in the country. They were tough against the run, giving up just 109.3 rushing yards per game (23rd), but their pass defense was less effective, ranking 60th in passing yards allowed.

Notre Dame vs Texas A&M Trends

• Across their last five road contests, Notre Dame has been good against the spread posting a mark of 3-2. Their overall mark in these games was 3-2, while averaging 33 points per game.
• Across the Texas A&M Aggies last ten home games, the team averaged 24 points per game while allowing 31. Their record vs the spread in these contests was 2-7-1, while going 1-9 straight-up.
• The last three games that Notre Dame was the underdog, they have an ATS mark of 1-1-1 while going 1-2 straight up.
• In their last three contests as the favorite, Texas A&M has a poor record vs the spread going 1-2. But, they still put together a straight up mark of 3-0.

Fighting Irish vs Aggies Prediction

Notre Dame is the +2.5 point underdog on the road in their week one matchup against Texas A&M. We have Notre Dame winning this game 28-23, and with them being the underdog, we like their chances to cover the spread.

With the over/under line sitting at 46.5 points, we have these teams combining for 51 points, making the over our top play for this matchup.

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All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

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* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.