Notre Dame vs USC Rivalry Is The Latest Casualty Of College Football Greed
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It would seem that the century old rivalry between Notre Dame and USC has come to an end and is the latest casualty in this ever-changing college football landscape. As is the case with all the other changes, it's yet another blow to the great tradition that made college football what it is. It's another casualty of a faulty playoff system and greed. According to Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports, the series is off and both teams are already working on finding replacements, something Notre Dame has already done by announcing a home-and-home with BYU.
Let's be honest, this was an inevitable move. The minute USC's greed resulted in it joining the Big Ten and blowing up the Pac 12 – a conference it had been in longer than it had played Notre Dame – the clock started ticking on the rivalry with Notre Dame. Head coach Lincoln Riley has been whining for years about this rivalry, in one breath talking about how great it is and in the very next breath talking about how it either needs to drastically change or perhaps, go away. His athletics director – Jennifer Cohen – has supported her coach in his desire to blow up the rivalry.
Apparently greed has done something that a world war and a worldwide pandemic could not do, kill this rivalry. Notre Dame and USC have been playing each other every year since 1926, and for more than 60 years the Irish would head out to Los Angeles to play in November every other year and the Trojans would come to South Bend in October every other year.
That wasn't going to work for USC, whose actions were that of an institution that wanted this rivalry to go away, despite calls from boosters and famous alums to make it happen. USC made demands of Notre Dame that it knew would be very difficult to meet, with the main desire being that the game be played at the beginning of the season. You know, like all those other big rivalries that play in the first two weeks. You know, like the …. hold on, let me think …. well there's, no, wait ….. yeah, there aren't any.
Notre Dame wanted this rivalry to continue and was willing to make concessions, but after USC continuously moved the goalposts, it seems that the leadership at Notre Dame has rightly decided enough is enough and they've moved on. According to the Los Angeles Times, there is hope that it could get put back on the schedule down the road, but the earliest that would happen is 2030. For now, this great rivalry is dead as the sport continues to show that tradition and rivalries aren't nearly as important as money and creating easier paths to the playoffs, where big pay days await.
USC gets rid of an opponent that has largely dominated them on the field, while Notre Dame adds a team to its schedule in BYU that has actually been a playoff contender in recent seasons. Notre Dame has won three straight over the Trojans, and those victories have been by an average margin of 17.3 points per game. The Irish have also won seven of the last eight and eight of the last 10, with all but two of those wins (2018, 2019) coming by double digits.
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