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Michigan State vs Notre Dame game time announced

IMG_2371by: Kenny Jordan05/07/26

After nearly a decade, Michigan State will meet Notre Dame this fall on the gridiron. Earlier today, Michigan State athletics announced the kickoff time for 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 19, 2026 at Notre Dame Stadium, in South Bend, Ind.

The game will be broadcasted on NBC and Peacock. Notre Dame and NBC have a media rights agreement through the 2029 season valued at $50 million annually that ensures all Notre Dame home games streamed on Peacock.

The rivalry between Michigan State and Notre Dame dates all the way back to 1897, with the Spartans and Fighting Irish meeting 79 times from 1897 to present. This will be the first meeting for the two programs since 2017.

Notre Dame leads the all-time series 49-29-1 and leads 33-27-1 since 1949, when the Megaphone Trophy was introduced. Similar to other rivalry games, the gap between the Spartans and Fighting Irish has been very competitive since joining the Big Ten and introducing rivalry games in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

The Megaphone Trophy is sponsored jointly by the Detroit alumni clubs of both schools. The megaphone is printed half blue, with a gold ND monogram, and half white, with a green MSC. All previous game scores are listed on the trophy.

The rivalry game was played 36 consecutive seasons from 1959-94 with a two-year interruption in 1995-96. They resumed play again for another 17 straight seasons from 1997-2013 before another two-year break in 2014-15. They resumed in 2016 and 2017 with a home-and-home series, with both schools winning on the road before a nine-year hiatus that will come to an end this year with the schools meeting again.

There have been many great games over the years between the two rivals, but no game comes close to the “Game of the Century” they played in 1966 at Spartan Stadium. This fall marks the 60th anniversary of the famous game, which has been regarded as one of the greatest contests in college football history and ended in a 10-10 tie.

The game was considered a de facto “national championship game” between No. 1 Notre Dame and No. 2 Michigan State. Michigan State entered the contest at 9-0, while Notre Dame was 8-0. After the tie, both schools finished the season at 9-0-1 and claimed national championships for the 1966 season.

Michigan State will host Notre Dame in East Lansing next season, with the two teams meeting again on Sept. 18, 2027.

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