The 2024-25 College Football Playoff semifinals are upon us. The two games are scheduled for Thursday and Friday, which will be followed the National Championship Game on Monday, January 20.
The CFP semifinals come at a perfect time because they will be immediately followed by the NFL’s Wild Card round. With three days of the 2025 NFL Playoffs, that means there will be playoff contests across college and professional football from Thursday through Monday.
FanDuel Sportsbook has a Playoff Payoff promotion to enjoy over the next five days. Each day, you can place a no-sweat same game parlay. If the SGP does not hit on a given day, you’ll get your loss refunded in the form of a bonus bet.
For this first day of the Playoff Payoff, you can get a No-Sweat Token to use on a 3+ leg Same Game Parlay wager for the Orange Bowl. The game features No. 7 Penn State (13-2) and No. 6 Notre Dame (13-1) meeting on Thursday night in Miami, Florida at Hard Rock Stadium. The Fighting Irish are a 1.5-point favorite at FanDuel Sportsbook.
No-Sweat Token Details
All you have to do is log in to your account, claim your No-Sweat Token, build your 3+ Leg SGP with total odds of +100 or longer, toggle on your No-Sweat Token, and place your bet. If your bet loses, you will get a refund in Bonus Bets.
There are also No-Sweat Tokens for the Cotton Bowl featuring Texas and Ohio State on Friday night and all three days of the NFL’s Wild Card round. That’s right, you can make one No-Sweat bet per day Thursday through Monday. See full terms at FanDuel Sportsbook.
Game Line
Penn State is currently a 1.5-point favorite over Notre Dame and this game feels like a true tossup.
- Per ESPN, Notre Dame has a 54.3% chance of beating Penn State despite the Nittany Lions being the narrow betting favorite.
- Penn State is 8-7 against the spread this season while Notre Dame is 12-2 against the spread.
- The all-time record between Penn State and Notre Dame is knotted up at 9-9-1.
Player passing yards
The O/U for passing yards for Penn State quarterback Drew Allar is set at 183.5 while Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard’s is at 164.5. Allar has gone above 183.5 passing yards nine times this season while Leonard has gone over 164.5 passing yards six times.
Allar and Leonard have both been stellar this season, but they’ll be facing tough defenses in the Orange Bowl.
- Notre Dame ranks No. 5 in total defense, and No. 8 in passing yards allowed.
- Penn State ranks No. 6 in total defense, and No. 27 in passing yards allowed.
- Penn State and Notre Dame are tied at No. 4 with 18 interceptions by the defense.
Leonard is coming off a 15-of-24 performance in the Peach Bowl against Georgia where he threw for just 90 yards and one passing touchdown. Allar was 13-of-25 in the Fiesta Bowl against Boise State for 171 yards with three passing touchdowns.
Over/Under
The over-under is currently at 45.5 points, a total that may be difficult to go over if these defenses play as advertised and both offenses stick to their philosophy of winning the time of possession battle. Further, both defenses thwart opposing offenses in the red zone. Solid rushing attacks and stifling defenses could lead to a low-scoring affair on Thursday night.
- Penn State Ranks No. 18 in rushing offense and No. 4 in red zone defense.
- Notre Dame ranks No. 11 in rushing offense and No. 5 in red zone defense.
Per FanDuel’s Riley Thomas, both Penn State and Notre Dame rank in the top 34% of the slowest offensive paces, are both in the top 30% of rush play rate, both are in the top seven in EPA allowed per play, and top six in yards allowed per play. In short, good luck scoring points against either defense.
Team Total Points
The over/under for Penn State’s total points is currently set at 22.5 while Notre Dame’s is at 23.5.
- Penn State has gone over 22.5 points 13 times this season.
- Notre Dame has gone over 23.5 points 11 times this season.
The data would indicate both teams are more than capable of going over, however, the talent on both defenses could make going over a lot harder than usual.
