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Colin Cowherd: 'Notre Dame came crawling back' to discussions with USC

Brian Jones Profile Picby: Brian Jones05/12/26brianjones_93

Colin Cowherd believes Notre Dame and USC are discussing bringing back the rivalry series because the Fighting Irish need the series to return. On Tuesday’s episode of The Herd, Cowherd shared his reaction to the two schools in talks to potentially play each other again.

“USC and Notre Dame are talking again, because Notre Dame came crawling back,” Cowherd said. “…USC has all the leverage. USC is in the toughest football conference. Money is rolling at USC. They don’t need another cold-weather game in October sandwiched between the Buckeyes and the Hoosier games. They don’t need it.

“Notre Dame needs it because Notre Dame has discovered, as the Big Ten has added Oregon, Washington, USC, and as the SEC has added Texas and Oklahoma, they have become super conferences. And now, because of NIL, even Vanderbilt and Indiana are good. So nobody wants to play Notre Dame.”

Ryan Kartje of the Los Angeles Times reported that Notre Dame and USC are in “active discussions” to resume the rivalry. USC wants to move the game earlier in the season, but Notre Dame wants the game to stay the same on the calendar. Even if the two schools agree to play again, it likely won’t happen until 2030.

Notre Dame and USC have played each other 96 times since 1926

As Cowherd mentioned, USC plays in the Big Ten, a conference that features the last three national champions (Indiana, Ohio State, and Michigan). The Trojans do not want to play Notre Dame in October or November because they will be in the thick of their Big Ten schedule.

That said, USC head coach Lincoln Riley wants to see the rivalry return. “I think everybody knows how I feel about the game,” Riley said. “I’ve said it multiple times. One of my first thoughts when I took the job at USC was getting to be a part of that rivalry. I have a deep respect for college football. Been a part of some great rivalries. Obviously, this is right there at the top. It’s pretty simple. We both worked for months to try and find a solution. Notre Dame was very vocal about the fact they would play us anytime, anywhere.”

Notre Dame and USC began playing in 1926. The two teams have met 96 times, and Notre Dame leads the series 51-37-5.

On3’s Nick Kosko contributed to this story.