College Football Picks: Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M

Get expert college football picks for one of this weekend's marquee games as Greg Vara breaks down the odds and his best bets for Notre Dame vs Texas A&M.
College Football Picks: Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M
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Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M Odds and Best Bets

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The Texas A&M Aggies look to remain undefeated as they head north to take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, who are looking for their first win of the season. The Aggies enter with a 2-0 record after wins against Utah State and Texas-San Antonio, while the Fighting Irish enter with a 0-1 record after dropping their opener two weeks ago at Miami. 

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Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M Betting Odds for  Week 3

Spread: Notre Dame -6.5 (-110 BetMGM); Texas A&M +6.5 (-105 DraftKings Sportsbook)

Total: Over 49.5 (-110 FanDuel Sportbook), Under 49.5 (-105 DraftKings Sportsbook)

Moneyline: Notre Dame -250 (FanDuel Sportsbook), Texas A&M +220 (BetMGM)

Not much line movement since this one opened, but it's a bit of a significant move as the line opened at Notre Dame -7 and as we all know, lines don't move off significant numbers like three or seven without a lot of momentum, which leads me to believe a good chunk of the public is on Texas A&M, for whatever that's worth. The total opened at 49.5, which is in the magic number range itself. This number hasn't seen any movement, however. 

Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M Betting Picks for Week 3

We are three weeks into the season and we don't know a lot about either team at this point. Texas A&M is 2-0, but it hasn't faced stiff competition yet. Notre Dame faced stiff competition in week one, but that's the only time we've seen them. 

The Aggies are led by all-around QB Marcel Reed who has lived up to some lofty expectations early this season. Though the competition has been weak, Reed has looked the part of a superstar in the making with over 500 yards passing, 105 yards on the ground and a 7/0 TD/INT ratio. If the Aggies are to win this game, they'll need Reed to be at his best. 

While the offense has exceeded expectations this season, the defense has just been okay and that could be a problem this week. The Aggies have allowed over 22 points per game to opponents that aren't exactly world beaters. Most troubling is their rush defense, which currently ranks 83rd in yards allowed per game. Keep in mind that game script has been in their favor for most of their first two games, so allowing so many rushing yards is a little concerning. 

Notre Dame is well equipped to take advantage of that weakness with Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price. Love, when healthy, is one of the most explosive running backs in the country and while he didn't get much run in the first game, you can expect the Irish to lean heavily on him in this game, again, if healthy. 

CJ Carr takes over the helm at QB for the Irish this season and he's off to a decent but not yet spectacular start. We have to factor in the situation when assessing his play in Week One however, as he was forced into a tough environment and held up pretty well. 

Though the Irish defense allowed 27 points against Miami, they actually played well for most of the game. They allowed only 3.1 yards per carry on the ground and held Carson Beck to just over 200 yards passing. In the end, losing the turnover battle 2-0, on the road, is usually going to end up in a loss.

Looking at the game this Saturday it comes down to Notre Dame's ability to run the ball vs. the playmaking of Marcel Reed. Though I like Reed and I think he'll fare well this Saturday, I'm worried about the Aggies ability to stop the Irish on the ground. Beyond that, Carr proved capable in his first game and now he gets to play in front of a friendly crowd, so I'm expecting to see improvement there as well. I like getting this number under seven, it's a number that the Irish should be able to handle.

Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M Expert Pick: Notre Dame -6.5 (BetMGM)

Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M Predictions for Week 3

As I've alluded to already, I'm expecting Notre Dame to run the ball a lot on Saturday. There won't be any questions about where Jeremiyah Love is in this game. As long as Notre Dame sticks to the script, they should be fine. That script involves a lot of running, with some play action sprinkled-in and a good amount of points. 

Texas A&M is going to put up a fight -- there's no doubt about that -- but there's only so much Reed can do on his own. Reed will keep A&M in the game for a while, but at some point the dam is going to break in the 2nd half and Notre Dame pulls away.

Notre Dame 31 - Texas A&M 21

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Vara is the lead golf writer at RotoWire. He was named the FSWA Golf Writer of the Year in 2005 and 2013. He also picks college football games against the spread in his "College Capper" article.
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