RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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USC and Notre Dame will renew their rivalry with a four-game series beginning in 2030, the schools announced Monday. The plan is for both programs to meet in the 2030 season opener at USC's Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before shifting to Notre Dame during Week 1 of the 2031 campaign.
Official dates for the third and fourth games in the home-and-home series will be announced later, but they will be played in the first month of the season.
"USC's historic rivalry with Notre Dame holds a special place in the history of college football , and we are happy to resume a series that means so much to the entire Trojan Family," USC athletics director Jen Cohen said in a statement. "It remains important for us to play this game early in the season, as it allows us to schedule competitively with our Big Ten peers and takes into account the health and best interests of our student-athletes and program. We are excited for our fans, and we look forward to more memorable matchups and unforgettable games between the Trojans and the Irish."
Last December, the two sides failed to reach an agreement necessary to play in 2026 , putting the series' future in jeopardy. The Fighting Irish and the Trojans have played annually since 1946, except for a brief pause in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I don't think anything more than to say I would just reference my comments earlier in the winter," Riley said last week at Big Ten Media Days about any changes to the Notre Dame series. "I think I gave everybody a pretty clear indication of how those have went, and nothing's changed from my vantage point. We want to play the game. I want to play the game. We would be playing the game had some things come true that were said. And so hopefully we get to that point.
"Obviously, we want it to happen. I know our fan base wants it to happen. College football wants it to happen. And hopefully I'm up here next year talking about that game here on the future schedule. So we'll keep making progress and let you know if we have any more updates."
Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman expressed confidence earlier this offseason that the rivalry would be renewed.
"You know, I don't listen to a lot of noise. Look, I've said this before: That rivalry's important for college football, and I'm confident that with Ron Powlus and Pete Bevacqua we'll get that rivalry back," Freeman said. "You know me, I'm a competitive individual, and I wanna go and play anytime, anywhere. But on the same token, it's important that I make decisions too that are best for the program. And to move a game that we were pretty sure was gonna be Week 12 to Week Zero isn't what's best."
To help make room for the future series, Indiana canceled its home-and-home series with Notre Dame, which was slated for 2030.
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