Riley puts blame directly on Notre Dame for ending series with USC 

College football has always been great because of the rivalries. Some of them, like Michigan vs. Ohio State, date back to the early 1900s. The Iron Bowl between Alabama and Auburn dates all the way back to 1893.

The rivalry between the USC Trojans and Notre Dame Fighting Irish may not be as heated as the two mentioned above, but it’s just as historic. 

USC and Notre Dame have been in talks to schedule games for 2026 and 2027, but, according to Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley, it’s the Fighting Irish who have dropped the ball when it comes to a continuation of this historic series.

“We took Notre Dame at their word that they would play us anytime and anywhere,” Riley said on Monday in a Valero Alamo Bowl news conference, per ESPN. “That proposal was rejected. Not only was it rejected, five minutes after we got the call, it was announced that they had scheduled another opponent [BYU], which I’ll give them credit. That might be the fastest scheduling act in college football history.”

This is a series that started in 1926, and the two rivals have played every season except from 1943 to 1945 because of World War II and in 2020 in response to COVID-19.

A global war and a global pandemic were previously the only two things that could get in the way of this rivalry. Notre Dame’s 34-24 win this past October will officially be the last game played between these two powerhouse schools for the foreseeable future, though.

Lincoln Riley blames Notre Dame for not scheduling USC in 2026 and 2027 

The reason? USC wanted to play the game earlier in the season rather than having it break up their Big Ten schedule later on in the campaign. USC was the only Big Ten school to play a non-conference opponent after Week 4 over the past two seasons, and the Trojans believe that has created a disadvantage for them as it relates to the College Football Playoff.

The Trojans wanted to keep playing Notre Dame, but they wanted to do it during the non-conference portion of the schedule. That’s apparently something Notre Dame wasn’t willing to do, though. As Riley pointed out, Notre Dame added a home-and-home series with BYU for 2026 and 2027, which effectively ends the Notre Dame-USC rivalry for at least the next two seasons.

It could continue after 2027, but Riley, perhaps understandably, was upset about the interruption, and he blamed it completely on the Fighting Irish. 

“Had Notre Dame lived up to their word and played us anytime, anywhere, we would be playing in the next two years, and looking ahead after that and hopefully, continuing the series,” Riley said. “They did not follow through on it. Thus, we are not playing them the next couple years.”

Riley has pointed out that USC doesn’t have the scheduling flexibility that Notre Dame has due to its ties to the Big Ten. He does want to see the series continue, though. This, despite the fact that he’s 0-2 in the rivalry as USC’s head coach.

“We at USC would love for the game to continue,” Riley said, “and we have no problem following through on our promises in the future.”