Notre Dame at UNC football game-day guide: How to watch, betting line, game notes
If No. 2 Notre Dame did not temporarily join the ACC this season due to the pandemic, No. 25 North Carolina would still be in control of reaching the league championship game. It’d come down to a scenario of beating Miami in two weeks for the Tar Heels to earn a berth in the game.
The path to the title game isn’t that simple for Carolina (6-2, 6-2 ACC) because the ACC did grant the Irish a season pass membership. But UNC coach Mack Brown, unlike Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi, is fine with that.
“They bring national attention, they bring prestige,” Brown told reporters on a video call. “It’s one of those programs that everybody talks about all the time and they’ve earned that right. So I think it’s good for our league.”
Brown pointed out the Irish (8-0, 7-0) is sharing their broadcast revenue with the league as part of their temporary football membership, which obviously helps soften the blow to every athletic budget cause by the pandemic.
Carolina wasn’t supposed to play the Irish this season. The game didn’t come about until the ACC revamped its schedule to the 10-plus-one model adapted to try and avoid unnecessary travel for non-conference games opening up the likelihood that COVID-19 would wreck havoc on those plans.
Instead of lamenting the difficulty -- the original schedule would have instead included a game with Georgia Tech (2-5, 2-4) -- Brown welcomes the short-term rivalry.
“We’re one of the ones fortunate enough that we’ve got a three game series with them,” Brown said. “We go to South Bend next year, and hopefully, we’ll have the ability to have full crowds again next year, because we’ve missed our fans so much. And then they come back here the next year. So we actually have a three game series with them and and that’ll be a fun challenge for us.”
How to watch UNC football vs. Notre Dame
The game kicks off at 3:30 p.m. Friday and is televised on ABC.
Betting odds: Irish favored by a touchdown
Notre Dame is favored by 6 points. The over/under is 69.
Game notes: Howell on impressive streak
▪ GOING STREAKING I: UNC sophomore quarterback Sam Howell has thrown a touchdown pass in 21 consecutive games -- basically every game he’s played in for two seasons -- which is tied with SMU’s Shane Buechele and UCF’s Dillon Gabriel for the longest in the nation.
▪ Carolina ranks last in the ACC in red zone defense, allowing opponents to score on 87.1 percent of their possessions. However, when examining touchdowns-only allowed in the red zone, its percentage drops to 61.0, which would rank UNC ninth the the league.
▪ The Tar Heels and Irish met as ranked teams in 1950, just the second meeting in the series. Friday’s meeting, the 21st overall in the series, will mark just the second time both teams are ranked when playing.
▪ GOING STREAKING II: During Howell’s consecutive passing touchdown streak, he’s thrown multiple scores in every game except the opener against Syracuse and last month’s win over N.C. State.
▪ Notre Dame has the top ranked defense in the ACC. But what you won’t find is an Irish defender ranked in the top 10 in tackles. Or top 20. Or top 30. Their leading tackler, safety Kyle Hamilton, ranks 37th in the league with 5.6 tackles per game and 39 overall.
▪ Notre Dame and North Carolina rank first and second, respectively, in the ACC in third down conversions. The Irish convert at a 54 percent clip, while the Heels have made 48.9 percent of their attempts.
▪ Brown and Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly are the two winningest-active coaches in the Football Bowl Subdivision. Who is first depends on if you include vacated wins. Brown has 257 career wins, Kelly has won 271 before the NCAA ordered wins in the 2012 and 2013 seasons vacated due to several Irish players receiving impermissible academic benefits.
No. 2 Notre Dame at No. 25 UNC
When: 3:30 p.m., Friday
Where: Kenan Stadium, Chapel Hill
Watch: ABC