Notre Dame Loss to Northern Illinois Worst in Nearly 30 Years – Odds, More
The college football season is only two weeks old, and we might have already witnessed the upset of the year. Notre Dame was a 28-point favorite in its home opener vs. Northern Illinois, yet shockingly lost 16-14.
It's a seemingly impossible result. The Fighting Irish ranged from -6000 to -10000 on the moneyline, a lead-pipe cinch to win Saturday's game. But the huge underdog Huskies had other plans.
Here's what oddsmakers are saying about Notre Dame's upset loss to Northern Illinois. And to get the most out of your college football action, use our BetMGM bonus code.
College Football Odds
Irish Eyes Aren't Smiling
A week ago, Notre Dame was putting on an impressive performance on the road against Texas A&M. The Irish notched a 23-13 victory as 3-point underdogs.
To sit at 1-1 SU and ATS a week later, playing a custom-made home opener designed to guarantee a win, is mind-boggling. The public betting masses were certainly flummoxed by Northern Illinois' outright win.
"A ton of moneyline parlays down the drain," BetMGM senior trader Cameron Drucker said. "Notre Dame was also a popular team in the CFP championship market. So this obviously hurts their playoff chances."
Indeed, after Notre Dame's win over Texas A&M, BetMGM moved the Irish from +2000 to +1600 in its College Football Playoff odds. That made Notre Dame the seventh choice in the CFP market.
Now, with such a devastatingly bad loss, the Irish are out to +6000, down to the co-15th choice. And if the CFP committee has to make a selection decision based on which team had the worst loss, then Notre Dame might already be in a class by itself.
"There are a lot of long faces in South Bend right now. That's a horrific loss," BetMGM Nevada's Scott Shelton said. "After getting by A&M, the Irish were supposed to cruise until USC [on Nov. 30]. They definitely need to run the table now."
Saturday's setback was the worst for Notre Dame by point spread since 1995, in a 17-15 loss as 28-point home chalk vs. Northwestern. Further, The Action Network's Evan Abrams noted that since 1990, within the first two weeks of the season, Notre Dame has three outright losses as a favorite of 20 or more.