Happy New Year, folks.

After the Nittany Lions cruise past Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Eve, they travel to Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida to face Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl, a College Football Playoff semifinal game.

Shortly after Notre Dame’s victory over Georgia, DraftKings set the opening line for the contest at 1.5 points in favor of the Fighting Irish. The game has an over/under of 46.5 points and a money line option of -122 for Notre Dame, making Penn State a +102 underdog.

The Nittany Lions and Fighting Irish have met a total of 19 times in their respective histories, with an even 9-9 record, including one 0-0 tie. The first match was in 1913 and the last match was in 2007, a 31-10 win for Penn State.

Penn State is 8-7 against the spread and 6-9 against the over/under this season.

Stat knowing

Penn State is 0-2 so far this season and 0-2 against underdog teams. On the other hand, Notre Dame is a 12-1 favorite this season after losing to NIU on September 7th.

Additionally, the Nittany Lions have the highest odds of winning the national championship of any remaining semifinal team at +450, behind teams like Texas at +380, Notre Dame at +360 and Ohio State at +110.

Pick of the week (3-2)

Penn State money line +102

Keep it simple this week, folks. No explanation needed – the Blue and Whites will win this game.