Consider these votes virtual bottles of champagne
Earlier this week, we asked Syracuse Orange fans who they think will be victorious in the College Football Playoff Championship game, and over two-thirds of you are thinking BIG.
61 Absolute Magicians chose Ohio State to secure their ninth National Title and first since the inaugural CFP Championship in 2015, while 29 others believe that Notre Dame will claim their 12th title and break a drought dating back to the undefeated 1988 campaign.
According to Fanduel Sportsbook, the Buckeyes are -105 to win and cover the spread (-8.5) and are -375 to win on the straight money line. The Fighting Irish are -115 to cover and +290 to pull off the upset.
On the national level, SB Nation readers favored the Buckeyes to win, with almost 40% expecting Ohio State to cover the 8.5 point spread.
Ohio State enters the final as the #12 scoring team in the nation (35.8 PPG including playoffs) and also has the clear-cut #1 defense (251.1 YPG and 12.2 PPG). Since losing to 6-5 Michigan at home in the regular season finale, Ryan Day’s team has outscored opponents 111 to 52 across three postseason wins.
Notre Dame meanwhile is the #6 scoring team nationally (37 PPG including playoffs) and surrenders the second-fewest points (14.3 PPG) and ninth-fewest yards (298.3 YPG). After being upset by NIU in Week 2, Marcus Freeman’s Irish have won 13 straight games.
The Championship kicks off Monday night at 7:30 EST at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, and it will be broadcast nationally on ESPN. For those who believe in the power of #FashionAnalytics, Notre Dame will wear one of their home uniforms – either the classic blue and gold combo or the green alternate – while Ohio State will counter with their “Heritage Stripe” throwback-style white jerseys.
The Irish are 43-16-1 all-time in the green alts (though they did lose in them when Kyle McCord led a game-winning drive last season), and while it hasn’t been announced yet, the school is asking fans attending the game to wear green. The Buckeyes have worn either the home or away version of the Heritage Stripe uniform in every CFP the program’s been in, and they hold a 2-3 mark in the road whites. They’ve worn them in the Natty just once: the 2021 loss to Alabama.