Big-time rivalry
Southern Cal and QB Sam Darnold, right, set to face longtime rival Notre Dame
When Notre Dame plays host Saturday night to Southern California, it will mark the first time since 2009 that both teams enter the annual matchup nationally ranked and the first time since
2006 the two rivals meet ranked in the top 15 of The Associated Press poll.
It’s a stunning fact given the names at play, the proud history of the two programs and the annual attention paid to one of college football’s most storied series. But it reveals a truth: USC (No. 10 in the Amway Coaches Poll) and Notre Dame (No. 16 in the coaches poll) might drip with tradition, but the recent history of this rivalry — dating back a generation, give or take — has found each program experience moments of excellence, but rarely simultaneously.
A meeting of this magnitude has been long coming. Rankings aside, there are deep layers to the matchup that will trickle through the remainder of the regular season, affecting not only the Trojans and Irish but also each of the Power Five conferences.
“I think it’s important that our players are aware of the game and the circumstances because that’s why they come here,” Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said. “It’s important not to just bury your head in the sand. Be aware of it.”
The winner will take a leap in the polls — the Irish in particular. To date, the greatest asset on Notre Dame’s résumé is a loss: Georgia’s 20-19 win in South Bend on Sept. 10. More than an impressive win two weeks later against Michigan State, the defeat lent the Irish credibility. The unbeaten Bulldogs have likewise ridden that victory into the thick of the early College Football Playoff race.
Beating the Trojans, meanwhile, would be the firmest indication to date that Notre Dame is a legitimate contender. There already are signs that this is the case: Notre Dame’s defense ranks
20th in the Football Bowl Subdivision in yards allowed per play, and an offense remade behind new coordinator Chip Long ranks fifth in rushing yards per game and third in yards per carry.
But there’s been a wait-and-see approach taken with the Irish — maybe as a logical byproduct of last year’s losing finish. Beating the Trojans would change that.
Patience is in shorter supply at USC. The Trojans were expected to roll out of the gate, continuing the torrid pace started in the second month of last season, and quickly separate themselves from the Pac-12 Conference to stand alongside Alabama, Clemson and the elite upper crust of the FBS. The results have been mixed.
At times, the Trojans are what they were believed to be — a powerful offense led by a sublime sophomore quarterback Sam Darnold; a ferocious defense keyed by its experienced leaders, including linebacker Cameron Smith; and a top-to-bottom powerhouse, with All-American starters bolstered by the roster’s deeper and more coherent second tier. At other times, however, the Trojans have looked lost.
It’s fair to say that outside of one game — the jaw-dropping takedown of Stanford on Sept. 10 — the Trojans have struggled. There have been close calls: Western Michigan, Texas, California and Utah. There’s even been a loss, the 30-27 decision at Washington State made even less bearable with the Cougars’ ensuing meltdown against the Golden Bears.
“As long as we win, I’m not going to complain,” Darnold said. “But yeah, we’re 6-1, we’re in control of our own destiny right now, and I think we have a really good shot of winning every game from here on out. That’s the goal.”
As individual teams, the Irish and Trojans convene with the same stakes at play: the winner vaults into the Playoff mix while the loser plans for a New Year’s Six bowl at best. And in a sense, both are looking for validation. But there’s more at play.
“Look, at the end of the day, we’re all going to be judged by wins and losses, and I understand that,” Kelly said, “and I said that from Day 1. But there’s a standard of play that we have to live up to. Our players understand that, and that’s the most important thing.”
It’s an enormous game for the Pac-12, which saw its credibility take a major hit last weekend with losses by Washington State and Washington. While not removing the Pac-12 from the title chase — not by a long shot — the weekend’s results did lessen the league’s room for error. The Trojans and Huskies can’t afford another loss. The same can be said for Stanford.
What happens in the Pac-12 ripples through the rest of the Power Five. Though far too early to eliminate individual conferences from the Playoff, it’s clear that happenings in the Pac-12 will affect the rest of the majorconference landscape: USC losing to Notre Dame would remove a prime Pac-12 contender from the mix while providing a little bit of wiggle room for the Big 12, for example.