Why Stanford is Notre Dame Football's Lamest Rival

Notre Dame and Stanford have played regularly for nearly 40 years, but the rivalry has rarely meant much

Oct. 13, 2012; South Bend, IN, USA; Stanford Cardinal running back Stepfan Taylor (33) attempts to dive over the goal line as Notre Dame Fighting Irish nose guard Louis Nix (9) and linebacker Manti Te'o (5) defend in overtime at Notre Dame Stadium. Notre Dame won 20-13. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Quick, picture this: You've taken up online dating and match with someone not originally from your part of the country. They appear to have some important common interests and beliefs as you, though.

You ask to meet up, they agree, and you're sitting at coffee.

Then you go to coffee again, and get crazy another time and decide to get ice cream.

This goes on and on and you keep seeing each other, but both of you know there is really not a whole lot there.

It's comfortable, but it's nothing special.

Sure, some of the coffee dates end up being sort of memorable, but the relationship lacks any real chemistry and feels hollow.

What I just described could be a description of part of my experience in online dating, or it could perfectly describe the feeling I get when Notre Dame and Stanford get set to square off in the annual rivalry game.

'Smart Schools' Battle for Legends Trophy

I don't know the exact conversation that led to Notre Dame and Stanford meeting annually in football, but I'm guessing it went something like: "You're a really good academic school that has a rich athletic tradition, and we're a really good academic school that has a rich athletic tradition - let's play each other in football!"

Battle for the Legends Trophy#GoIrish☘️ | Game 6 | @MyCreditUnion1 pic.twitter.com/E8agl5AIqd

— Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) October 11, 2024

And seemingly, that's what has led to Notre Dame and Stanford squaring off on the football field in all but three seasons dating back to 1988.

The schools are built on academics and have had that noted athletic success in a variety of competitions, but the rivalry has always felt forced.

Sure, the Stanford band has acted a fool in a poor effort to try and make things interesting, but that hasn't worked.

Memorable Moments Aplenty in Notre Dame vs Stanford

While the rivalry has been a massive dud since Stanford upset Notre Dame in 2021, there have been memorable moments.

The first time the two teams met was actually all the way back in the 1925 Rose Bowl, a 27-10 Notre Dame win in its first national championship season.

1990 and 1992 both saw Stanford essentially end Notre Dame's national championship dreams with massive upsets in South Bend.

Then there is a large gap of being much memorable between the two, despite the teams alternating wins each season between 1997 and 2002, and the series being competitive.

Finally, in 2012, Notre Dame kept its dream perfect regular season live with a late comeback and goaline stand for the ages.

2014 saw more last second heroics when tight end Ben Koyack scored on a desperate heave by Everett Golson to again keep Notre Dame unbeaten.

2015 then saw Notre Dame's playoff dreams ripped from its heart when a last second field goal went the way of the Cardinal.

I say all of that to say this:

Notre Dame and Stanford have provided a significant amount of memorable moments on the field.

However, the chemistry that makes a rivalry great, the way it does with USC, Michigan, Michigan State, and Miami over the years, simply doesn't exist.

Notre Dame and Stanford have Condoleezza Rice and Tyrone Willingham to fall back on for that chemistry - which tells you pretty much everything you need to know.