In no scenario should Duke be discounted. Mike Elko has done an incredible job with his veteran-laden roster, and Riley Leonard has done an incredible job himself moving this Blue Devils offense. The best reason to pick Duke is the emotional element with Notre Dame losing a hard-fought home game and now going on the road to a hostile environment. But I'm a huge fan of what Sam Hartman has done turning this Fighting Irish offense around. He's not only effective but efficient and protective of the ball. This should be a 7-point line, which gives us some value on Notre Dame. The Irish need to win every remaining game in impressive fashion if they hope to have any chance at the playoff.

The Irish let a golden opportunity falter at home last week against Ohio State. Led by quarterback Sam Hartman expect the Irish to regroup against a Duke team he is very familiar with. His last ACC game was a loss last year at Duke. He will have the Irish motivated and ready to play as they knock of the Blue Devils.

Had Notre Dame stopped Ohio State at the goal line and celebrated a win, this would be a stay-away game. Instead, the Irish will have shed their disappointment by kickoff against Duke and will likely extend their amazing straight-up win streak over ACC members to 30. Duke is legit, with able QB Riley Leonard and a fly-to-the-ball defense. But it must deal with big-boy football. The Damers own a significant size advantage. They can spotlight RB Audric Estime, the nation's top rusher, which will open up passing lanes for QB Sam Hartman. The setting in rowdy Durham will be challenging, but it's not like the Irish never invade hostile territory. Old hat for them.

Very curious how the Irish respond to the gut-punch last-second loss to Ohio State (thus, I have no opinion on the side), but if Notre Dame's stellar defense held that Nuts offense full of future NFL players to 17 points what might it do at Duke? The Blue Devils are a very good defensive team as well under Coach Mike Elko -- the former DC in South Bend. Notre Dame likely will be without top WR Jayden Thomas (13/195/1). This should be a very run-heavy game.

Well, if schedule dynamics mean anything, edge Blue Devils, who rarely worked up a sweat last week in rolling past UConn while the Domers were battling down to the last second, literally, vs. Ohio State. Mike Elko is also familiar with ND QB Sam Hartman, who was outpassed by Riley Leonard last November (391-347 yards) in Duke's 34-31 win. Elko also isn't defending Dave Clawson's slow-mesh this time, and there will be pressure the other way on Marcus Freeman's defense to slow down the best dual-threat QB (Leonard) it might see all season. The Irish's unlikely 29-game reg.-season win streak vs. the ACC has caught all sorts of breaks along the way and will be hard-pressed to get to 30.

Duke is definitely a football school now with QB Riley Leonard wreaking havoc on all four defenses he’s played this season. Duke returned 17 starters and it’s all coming together at 4-0. They beat Clemson in the opener. Notre Dame brought back 15 starters including four offensive linemen and brought in QB Sam Hartman to run the show. Hartman has 14 TDs and no picks through five games and comes off the 3-point loss to Ohio State. Notre Dame’s defense will be the toughest Leonard has seen this season and the Duke defense will struggle just enough with Hartman. I’m on Notre Dame to cover.

This game is a monumental one for the Duke Blue Devils, who have already proven they can handle the bright lights. In Week 1 they held Clemson to 7 points in an upset win, and have only allowed one opponent to score in double-digits. ND plays the same game as Duke does, so look for this one to be a defensive slugfest down in Durham.