Experts expect Notre Dame to cruise over Northern Illinois

Notre Dame hosts Northern Illinois in its season opener on Saturday, and the experts are united — the No. 5 Fighting Irish are likely to avoid an upset and cruise over the Huskies.

Any potential for a letdown following the Irish’s season-opening win at Texas A&M seems to be small.

CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm has the Irish covering the 28.5-point spread, saying that he can’t foresee the Huskies coming within four touchdowns of Notre Dame. Palm also points out that “If Notre Dame wants to be a playoff contender with its relatively soft schedule, it needs to send messages in games like this”, and he expects that the Irish will send that message while not looking ahead to instate rival Purdue in Week 3.