Ohio State vs Notre Dame Same-Game Parlay for National Championship Game

• The Ohio State Buckeyes and Notre Dame Fighting Irish battle for the National Championship Monday night
• Quarterbacks Riley Leonard and Will Howard are spotlighted in our player prop picks
• See below to find the best Ohio State Notre Dame same-game parlay

The first-ever national champion from the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff will be crowned Monday night, when the Ohio State Buckeyes (13-2) battle the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (14-1).  The Buckeyes are the hefty 8.5-point favorites in the college football odds.

This game features two of the Top 12 scoring teams in all of college football, but also two of the elite defenses in the NCAA, making our job sorting through player props just a little more difficult. Alas, challenge accepted: see below for my three-leg Ohio State vs Notre Dame same-game parlay.

Ohio State vs Notre Dame Same-Game Parlay Picks

This SGP adds up to +395 odds, which means a $100 wager would profit $395 if all three legs hit. Action gets underway at 7:30pm ET from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA. ESPN will be carrying the broadcast.

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Leonard Uses His Legs

The Irish have featured Leonard in the running game during the CFP. He has carried at least 11 times in each game, and has led the team in attempts in all three contests.

Leonard’s most productive day on the ground was against second-ranked Georgia, carrying 14 times for 80 yards in their 23-10 win in the quarterfinals.

Look at Charles Jagusah and Tosh Baker, clearing the way for Riley Leonard on Notre Dame’s first TD last night.

Jagusah tore his pec in August. Baker was benched less than a week later. Incredible how stories like theirs keep happening for the Irish. pic.twitter.com/I00lwh7sfJ

— Jack Soble (@jacksoble56) January 10, 2025

He fell just short of his 36.5 yard rush line in the semifinal, and ran for 30 yards on 11 totes in the opener against Indiana.

The Buckeyes possess the third-best rushing defense in the nation, allowing just 89.9 yards per contest, but Tennessee pivot Nico Iamaleava showed it can be done, running for 47 yards on 20 carries in OSU’s opening CFP game.

Howard Will Spin, Smith Should Rebound

Something’s gotta give Monday night: Buckeyes’ quarterback Will Howard has thrown for at least 289 yards in every playoff game, including going for 300+ in wins over Tennessee and Oregon.

Notre Dame hasn’t allowed a quarterback to cross 235 yards passing across its three CFP wins.

Howard has raised his game when it counts, as he had failed to cross his 241.5 passing line set for the national title game in his four of final regular season games. In fact, he had only one 300-yard game in the regular season before popping two in the CFP.

JEREMIAH SMITH TD 🔥

OHIO STATE SCORES ON THEIR OPENING DRIVE‼️ pic.twitter.com/UC7BQAzReT

— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) January 1, 2025

The difference here is the Fighting Irish’s desire to play man-to-man, and that should be a recipe for Howard to hit some biggies.

One of his targets will be Jeremiah Smith, who was absolutely blanketed by Texas in the national semifinal. The constant double and triple teams worked: Smith had a season-low one catch on three yards, but everyone else ate in a 28-14 win.

Still, Texas is the outlier, and Notre Dame will probably not allocate that many resources the entire game on Smith.

He’s picked up four TDs in the playoff before getting shut out – he has plus odds to find paydirt Monday.

• The SGP (+395): Riley Over 36.5 rushing yards (-114) + Howard Over 241.5 passing yards  (-114) + Smith anytime TD (+126)
• Wager: 1 Unit to win 3.95 Units