Irish; a Look at the Numbers

The Irish finally have a win under their belt, and it was a long time coming. Notre Dame enjoyed a tremendous first two seasons under Charlie Weis racking up a 19-6 SU record and two consecutive BCS bowl appearances. Unfortunately the good times didn’t last. This season’s version of the Irish has struggled to say the least. In their current “Jeckel and Hyde” reenactment Notre Dame had lost seven straight until last weekends upset of UCLA.

Over the last two and a half seasons there has been a lot of talk about wins and losses for the Irish, but I wanted to know how they do against the number. I wanted to know if those SU wins and losses translated into money in the bank. What I found out just might surprise you.

Under Weis the Irish got off to a fast start winning six of their first eight and posting a 7-1 ATS record but they finished the 2005 season 3-1 SU and 0-4 ATS. That’s 9-3 SU and 7-5 ATS. Nothing spectacular but at least they made money.

In 2006 the winning continued with an impressive 10-3 SU mark and their second BCS appearance in two seasons, but their ATS mark bottomed out. By the time Notre Dame wrapped up the year they amassed a dismal 4-8-1 ATS record.

2007 has been a complete disaster. Notre Dame lost their first five games of the season while allowing over 30 points per game. They were just as bad against the number posting a 1-4 ATS mark. Their first win of the season came last week against UCLA which bumped their 2007 record to a blistering 1-5 SU, 2-4 ATS.

In two and a half seasons under Charlie Weis Notre Dame has a combined 13-17-1 ATS record. If you take away the 7-1 ATS record in their first eight games of 2005 the Irish are a pathetic 6-16-1 ATS in their last 23 games.

These numbers don’t improve much at home where Notre Dame holds a 5-10 ATS record under Weis. Things aren’t any better on the road where the Irish are 6-12 ATS. At neutral locations Notre Dame really struggles posting a 1-2 SU/ATS record. The only win coming against Navy in 2006.

The Irish are 20-11 SU and 13-17-1 ATS for 43.3 percent in their last 32 games. They are 14-9 SU and 6-16-1 ATS for 27.2 percent in their last 24 games, and 1-7 SU, 2-6 ATS for 25 percent in their last eight.

No matter how you look at it Notre Dame is a bad investment opportunity. We will pass!

Back to Article Listing