What is the early Penn State-Notre Dame point spread for the Orange Bowl?

On By Littum

Penn State now knows who it will play in its first-ever College Football Playoff semifinal. Nittany Lions no. 6 beat no. 3 Boise State 31-14 to earn their second postseason win while also moving two games closer to winning a national title. The team arrived back in State College a few hours before the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans was originally scheduled to be played. However, matchup between no. 2 Georgia played no. 5 Notre Dame was moved to 4 p.m. ET Thursday after a deadly early morning truck attack on Bourbon Street Wednesday. The winner draws the Lions in the next round. PSU is 9-9-1 all-time against ND and won their last meeting in 2007. It’s 1-1 against UGA, last losing to the Bulldogs in 2016. Now we know who the next opponent will be for the head coach James Franklin’s page.

Penn State will play Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish beat the Bulldogs 23-10.

Before kickoff in New Orleans, many betting operators listed the Lions as a short underdog against either side. The new point spread is Notre Dame -1.5 at both FanDuel and DraftKings. The early over/under is 45.5 on the former and 47.5 on the latter. Circa opened the spread right away and totaled 50.

The Orange Bowl starts at 7:30 PM ET on January 9th. Information about tickets can be found here. ESPN is broadcasting the game. Dave Pasch (play-by-play), Roddy Jones (color commentary), Kris Budden (sideline reporter) and Taylor McGregor (sideline reporter) will join the call. Other information including officiated assignments, uniform combinations, the team’s schedule for the week and more will be released later this week.

Penn State will turn its focus on the festivities to the semifinals

Asked about Notre Dame and Georgia after the game, head coach James Franklin made it clear that he and his program would take time to fully enjoy the Fiesta Bowl victory before moving on to begin preparations for its next game. It has a two-day rest advantage over the Irish. Both sides will waste little time preparing for the monumental contest.

“Honestly, I want to enjoy this Boise win and this Fiesta Bowl win for a couple of hours,” Franklin said Tuesday night. “We’re going to enjoy the new year. We’re going to enjoy this win for a couple of hours and then obviously we’re going to start getting a little bit of an edge on these teams. But obviously two good programs. Won a lot of games. History, tradition, talent , coaching At this point in the season, you’re going to play really good people, and we’re excited about that opportunity.

“But tonight we will enjoy this for a few hours. There will be plenty of time and hours to focus on the next opponents.”