Best College Football Prop Bets for Notre Dame vs. Georgia in College Football Playoff Quarterfinals

Reed Wallach | Dec 29, 2024

Dec 20, 2024; Notre Dame, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Riley Leonard (13) celebrates with head coach Marcus Freeman after scoring a touchdown during the second half against the Indiana Hoosiers at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-Imagn Images / Matt Cashore-Imagn Images

The Sugar Bowl has plenty of intrigue in this projected coin flip between Georgia and Notre Dame.

The headline in this game is Georgia starting backup quarterback Gunner Stockton, but the real key to this one from a player prop perspective is Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard. I have a pair of player props on the ND quarterback, as well as one on Georgia running back to highlight our player props article. 

Best College Football Prop Bets for Notre Dame vs. Georgia

• Riley Leonard OVER 34.5 Rushing Yards
• Riley Leonard UNDER 173.5 Passing Yards
• Trevor Etienne OVER 71.5 Rushing Yards

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Riley Leonard OVER 34.5 Rushing Yards

Georgia’s biggest issue this season has been containing mobile quarterbacks. 

In the Bulldogs' two losses and closest call in the regular season, mobile quarterbacks were a big issue. Jalen Milroe rushed for more than 100 yards in the Georgia loss at Alabama while Jaxson Dart scrambled for more than 50. In the team’s close call against Georgia Tech, Haynes King rushed for north of 100 as well. 

Riley Leonard is a similar type of quarterback as these three, incredibly difficult to tackle at 6’4” and nearly 220 pounds, and can test the Georgia defensive line. The Bulldogs will likely commit its resources to stopping the run while trusting its defensive backs to shut down a pedestrian ND passing game, which means Leonard may need to trust his legs more often. 

Riley Leonard UNDER 173.5 Passing Yards

While I like Leonard to go over his rushing yards prop, I prefer to go under on his passing yards. 

The Notre Dame quarterback did go over with a deep pass late in the game against Indiana to finish with 201 yards passing, but that appears to be the high end of what the Irish passing offense can give. 

Further, the Georgia defense has shut down Notre Dame offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock’s offense already back when Denbrock was with LSU. Those LSU teams were littered with talented playmakers, including Jayden Daniels (who got hurt midway through the game) and Malik Nabers. The Bulldogs won 50-30 in a game that was over relatively fast. 

In a game that may feature limited possessions and a defensive minded affair, I don’t see much success from the Notre Dame passing game. Leonard has only cleared this number in six games this season, and I’ll lean with the under in this one. 

Trevor Etienne OVER 71.5 Rushing Yards

With Stockton stepping in for Carson Beck, I believe that Georgia will lean on its ground game to get past Notre Dame with timely passes. 

The Florida transfer Etienne has battled injuries this season, but even playing hurt against Texas we saw his upside in the SEC Championship, rushing for 94 yards on 16 carries. 

With another three weeks to heal up, Etienne should be at full strength for this one and I like him to clear this mark with heavy volume. The Notre Dame rush defense is outside the top 40 in EPA/Rush and will struggle to keep up with the size of Georgia as the team will be at a talent deficit for arguably the first time all season. 

Further, Notre Dame will be without defensive tackle Rylie Mills for this one after he suffered a knee injury against Indiana, which should open up the middle of the ND defensive line for Etienne to take advantage. 

The clear lead back in a rush-minded game script, Etienne should soar over this total on volume alone. 

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