The Real Truth Behind the USC Trojans and Notre Dame Rivalry Pause

The USC Trojans and Notre Dame Fighting Irish announced that the historic rivalry between the two programs will be paused after both sides failed to come to a scheduling agreement to extend the series.

The risk of the rivalry game ending was a talking point throughout the season, with USC reportedly preferring that the game be played earlier in the season while Notre Dame wanted to keep playing later in the year, closer to Thanksgiving.

usc trojans notre dame fighting irish rivalry schedule agreement cancel college football playoff criteria big ten independent — Oct 14, 2023; South Bend, Indiana, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley and Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman chat before the game at Notre Dame Stadium. | Matt Cashore-Imagn Images

College Football Playoff or Bust... For Better or For Worse

Underneath the disagreement between Notre Dame and USC is both program's desire of playing in the College Football Playoff and ultimately competing for national championships. The two sides could not see eye to eye on scheduling the game because both teams are seemingly protecting their own CFP interests.

Notre Dame narrowly missed the CFP in the 2025 season, and a win over USC was one of the Fighting Irish's best wins of the year. On the other hand, if the Trojans were able to pick up a win over Notre Dame in addition to their Big Ten schedule, USC would likely be looked upon more favorably by the CFP Selection Committee.

Instead, teams have been incentivized to avoid losses altogether. Scheduling high-profile teams during the middle of conference schedules cannot be easy for Notre Dame, but the Fighting Irish have games scheduled against BYU, Texas, and Alabama in the near future.

Meanwhile, USC is scheduled to face Indiana, Penn State, Ohio State, Oregon, Washington, and more as part of the Trojans' Big Ten slate in 2025.

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Losing USC vs. Notre Dame is Bad for College Football

Not necessarily a hot take, but losing the historic rivalry between USC and Notre Dame is the latest change to the sport of college football that could be pushing fans away. Both teams might be valid in their reasoning and prioritizing of the CFP, but a team worthy of winning the national championship should be able to beat any team at any time and on any field.

Back in October, Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua said that both schools want the rivalry series to continue, but something clearly changed. The Fighting Irish announced a scheduling agreement with BYU, meaning Notre Dame and USC might not square off until 2030.

"My hope, and I think USC shares this, and I know they share it, we wanna keep this series going. It's so special. I’ll be the first to admit it's great for Notre Dame. I think it's great for USC, and maybe most importantly, I think it's great for college football. This is one of those rivalries that define college football, define the sport, the greatest intersectional rivalry that there is. And I think the public deserves it. I think the college fans deserve it," Bevacqua said during an appearance on "The Dan Patrick Show."

Both Teams are to Blame, Not Just Lincoln Riley

According to reports, everything changed when news of Notre Dame's agreement with the CFP surfaced. The Fighting Irish are guaranteed a spot in the 12-team field if they finish the season ranked inside the top 12 after signing a memorandum of understanding with the CFP. A lot of blame has been placed on USC coach Lincoln Riley and athletic director Jen Cohen, but it feels as though both programs are to blame here.

Some can view Notre Dame's agreement with the CFP as security for the Fighting Irish being outside of a conference, given that the current playoff format has five automatic bids for the five highest-ranked conference champions.

USC seemingly no longer wants to play Notre Dame in November during the Trojans' conference schedule, and the Fighting Irish reportedly declined an offer to play in week zero.