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PINSTRIPE BOWL PREVIEW DEC. 19, 2013 ROLE REVERSAL BY LOU SOMOGYI Unlike past seasons, Notre Dame enters its postseason contest a heavy favorite over Rutgers Senior quarterback Chas Dodd took over under center in game 11 and posted a 1-1 mark as the starter, while connecting on 35 of 59 throws (59.3 percent) for 465 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. PHOTO CVOURTESY RUTGERS T here are 35 bowl games scheduled through Jan. 6, and only one is classified by oddsmakers as a greater mismatch than Notre Dame against Rutgers in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl Dec. 28 at Yankee Stadium. The Fighting Irish have been installed as a 15.5-point favorite over Rutgers. Only Baylor being a 16.5-point favorite over Central Florida in the Fiesta Bowl eclipses that. That is a dramatic departure for Notre Dame from the past 20 years, when it has usually been considered the badly outmatched opponent in the postseason. From the time the 6-4-1 Irish in 1994 were matched against 10-1 Colorado in the 1995 Fiesta Bowl (a 41-24 loss) through last year's 42-14 fiasco in the BCS National Championship Game against Alabama, it's often been a case of Notre Dame's brand name outweighing its actual ability to match up against a superior bowl opponent. It is 0-4 in BCS games since that era began in 1998, with the average margin of defeat being 25.3 points. This Pinstripe Bowl will not be mistaken for the BCS, and this time Notre Dame is playing the role of the heavy favorite. The expectation is that against a 6-6 Rutgers team that barely qualified to be bowl eligible and saw second-year head coach Kyle Flood fire his defensive coordinator, offensive line coach and quarterbacks coach the day after the regular season ended, the outcome could be similar to the 49-21 pasting Notre Dame administered against outmatched 7-6 Hawaii in the 2008 Hawaii Sheraton Bowl. The Scarlet Knights might not even be as threatening as Hawaii, which at least was playing on its home turf and a couple of weeks earlier nearly upset Brian Kelly's Big East champion Cincinnati Bearcats before losing 29-24. Consequently, this is considered the ultimate no-win situation for Notre Dame. If the Irish win, it won't generate any buzz on the college football radar because they're "supposed to" cruise easily in this ✦ GAME FACTS Date: Dec. 28, 2013. Site: Yankee Stadium (52,325). Kickoff: 12:15 p.m. EST. Television: ESPN. Radio: This broadcast can be heard on SIRIUS Satellite Radio (channel 129). Series Facts: This is the fifth meeting between Notre Dame and Rutgers. The Irish hold a 4-0 advantage over the Scarlet Knights, and won the last meeting 42-0 in South Bend in 2002. Coaches: Notre Dame — Brian Kelly (36-15, fourth season); Rutgers — Kyle Flood (15-10, second season). Notable: Notre Dame has outscored the Scarlet Knights 197-17 in four alltime meetings … In three of those matchups, the Irish earned a shutout … Notre Dame and Rutgers first played in 1921 at New York's old Polo Grounds, with the Irish posting a 48-0 triumph … This will be Notre Dame's second game at Yankee Stadium; in the first, the Irish defeated Army 27-3 in November 2010 … The Pinstripe Bowl provides the teams with a $1.8 million payout … The Scarlet Knights will join the Big Ten in 2014.