LOS ANGELES (AP) — No matter the stakes or the personalities involved, the fabled intersectional meeting between Notre Dame and Southern California remains one of the most tantalizing Saturdays on every college football calendar.
“It’s always an important game,” USC coach Lincoln Riley said. “It’s a rivalry game. There’s a lot of history behind it. It’s two great programs. It’s played in iconic places. I just think that when you come here, the history behind this game is just so epic. It just is. I think it would be disrespectful to not be as ready as you possibly can be.”
It's even better when both the Fighting Irish and the Trojans are in the national title race, of course. But the rivals will settle for a matchup that will either stamp Notre Dame's ticket to the College Football Playoff — or allow USC to pull one of the most momentous upsets in their near-century of joint history.
No. 5 Notre Dame is one win away from an 11-1 regular season and a prime spot in the first 12-team playoff. The Fighting Irish just need to add one more disappointment to a lost season for the Trojans (6-5) in the 95th edition of a rivalry that began at the Coliseum in 1926.
“This will truly be our biggest challenge to date, for multiple reasons,” Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman said. “The noise and the things outside of this game that have nothing to do with this game, that’s going to be a reason why it’s a challenge. But (also) because of how good this team is in relation to its record."
This annual long-distance showdown originally became momentous back when every game wasn’t on television, back when teams didn’t habitually traverse the continent to play college football — and also back when USC didn’t play in a conference with two other schools from Indiana.
But the frequency of this matchup — it's been played every year but one since World War II — and its regular importance in the national title race have prevented it from fading into the sport's background.
Riley and Freeman both made their head coaching debuts in the matchup two years ago at the Coliseum, where Caleb Williams led USC to a 38-27 victory — its only win in the series since 2016.
“We had a lot of hopes, if we win this game, what bowl game we were going to,” Freeman said. “They obviously crushed those hopes. ... Keep the pain. That’s one that sticks with me a long time, and that’s one that I’m going to make sure the guys in this program understand.”
A year later in South Bend, the Irish routed a previously unbeaten USC team 48-20, sending the Trojans into a spiral from which the program arguably still hasn't recovered.
Freeman wants his team to realize the Trojans’ potential: “They’re 3-1 in their last four games. They have one loss at home, and it was the overtime loss to Penn State. They’ve led in the fourth quarter in every game this year.”
Indeed, the Trojans are playing out their second straight disappointing season under Riley on their way to a minor bowl game, but that’s because they’ve repeatedly fallen short in close games, with their five losses coming by a total of 19 points.
Riley has repeatedly said the Trojans would become strong in close games because “it’s all we know,” and that proved correct during their wins over Nebraska and UCLA in the past two weeks.
The Irish haven’t been in many tough late-game situations recently. In fact, they’ve only played two games all season that were within one score at the final whistle: Their embarrassing loss to Northern Illinois and their 31-24 win over a ranked Louisville team.
“Our guys will understand the challenge they have ahead of us,” Freeman said. “You don’t have to play in close games to feel the pressure of performing. ... Close games are won by executing on that play when it matters the most, so we try to create that type of mindset.”
Jayden Maiava will make only his third start at quarterback for USC on Saturday, but the newcomer is unbeaten so far — and he has only starred in marquee games for the Trojans.
After beating the Huskers in his debut, Maiava led the Trojans to victory in the rainy Crosstown Showdown last Saturday. The UNLV transfer passed for 221 yards and a touchdown with no turnovers.
“I’m going to have confidence in us no matter who the opponent is,” he said. “Can’t get rattled about the title of the team (you’re playing). You’ve got to execute and play at a high level, no matter who the opponent is. It’s a great rivalry. I can’t wait. I look forward to it. This team is ready.”
This game marks the 50th anniversary of the rivalry's 1974 edition, which was also one of the greatest wins in USC's history. The Irish led 24-0 at the Coliseum until the Trojans finally scored 10 seconds before halftime — and then returned the second-half kickoff for another touchdown, inciting an avalanche of 55 consecutive points in less than 17 minutes in USC's 55-24 victory.
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football