For a long time I was in the "Notre Dame must extend the USC series no matter what" camp, but it's time to move off that position. It's not about the new realities of college football, softening the schedule or any other lame excuse that USC is trying to dip out of the series, it's about finally telling an opponent that doesn't value the series that they are no longer going to control your own schedule.

Notre Dame vs USC is one of the biggest rivalries in the sport. It's right up there with Ohio State vs Michigan, Alabama vs Auburn and Florida vs Florida State. It's been happening since 1926, and back then the Irish and Trojans played in November every season. In most years it was the last or second to last game of the season for Notre Dame.

After taking a hiatus during World War II, the series resumed in 1946 and the two teams played on the last Saturday of November no matter the year, no matter the location. It wasn't until 1961, at USC's request, that Notre Dame moved their home game against the Trojans to October. So we've already seen Notre Dame make moves to accommodate USC's unwillingness to travel East in the cold weather.

Once they joined the Big Ten, however, USC showed they are willing to travel East more in order to rake in more TV dollars. 

But now, USC and Lincoln Riley are looking to get out of the series. They can tell you all they want that they want it to continue but the "realities of the current system" make it hard to continue the series as scheduled. USC has leaked that it proposed to Notre Dame to move the series to the beginning of the year in order to play it in September.

So what's wrong with that?

Well, several things. For one, USC knows very well what Notre Dame has on its September schedule for the next decade. This is nothing more than an attempt to make an "offer" that they know Notre Dame can't accept - or shouldn't accept, and then if Notre Dame says no USC's "leadership" can go to their boosters and fans - who absolutely want this series to continue - and say "Well, we tried but Notre Dame said no."

Second, the realities of the September schedules moving forward makes scheduling this game extremely difficult. USC wants to get rid of the LSU's, Ole Miss's, Notre Dame's from their schedule so they can make it softer and easier to manage in an attempt to make getting to the playoff much easier. It's how Riley operates. It's why he left Oklahoma as soon as they went to the SEC and why he turned down LSU for USC. He wants an easier path.

Remember, this is the program that when they won the title in 2004 had to play Notre Dame, Virginia Tech and BYU out of conference. The next season they played Notre Dame, Arkansas and a really good Fresno State in their non-conference.

USC, if Notre Dame was willing to accept this change, would surround their matchup against the Irish with Group of Five opponents and teams they can pound, while Notre Dame would be forced to fit USC around teams like Texas, Alabama, Arkansas, Purdue and Michigan State. If Notre Dame accepted this offer from USC, in September of 2029 they would start the season with Alabama, South Florida, Texas and USC in the month of September.

That's not smart to do, and USC knows that. It's why they made the offer and I'm willing to bet you they did so because they want Notre Dame to be the one to end the series. USC's decision makers want out, but they are trying to play the "save face" game, and Notre Dame needs to call their bluff.

Third, games in September just don't matter as much in modern football. It's not something I'm happy about, but it's true. Notre Dame lost to Northern Illinois last season and it didn't keep them from ending up ranked 5th in the final rankings and hosting a playoff game. What happens if that game happens the Saturday after Thanksgiving? 

Notre Dame Athletics Director Pete Bevacqua needs to call their bluff, and be very public about it. He needs to make one simple offer. Let's go back to doing it the way we did it at the beginning. Let's restore the tradition of this rivalry, one that existed until 1961. Let's play every game the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

Alabama and Auburn do it, Ohio State and Michigan do it. Oh, those teams are in the same conference? Fair point. Well, Florida and Florida State do it, Clemson and South Carolina do it, Louisville and Kentucky do it, Georgia and Georgia Tech do it. Heck, Notre Dame and USC had no problem doing it when the game was played out in California. So why not do it now? The Big Ten can easily accommodate this game being played after Thanksgiving every year.

Make the offer, tell them this is how it should be, and say the only acceptable counter offer is signing under the current arrangement. Put the final decision in USC's hands and make them be the ones to decide to do what I believe they ultimately want to do, which is back out of the series.

I truly hope Bevacqua doesn't let USC bully Notre Dame into moving the series yet again. He needs to hold his ground, make the offers I discussed above and make sure that the media knows it's what he wants. Notre Dame is more than willing to play USC every year, and we'll move the schedule off what it currently is to make it happen, but no real rivalry plays at the beginning of the season every year.

These are the terms, take them or leave them.

No longer can Notre Dame live in a world where USC dictates their schedule the way it has in the past. Go look at the new rules for the SEC in its new 9-game scheduling model. They have to play one Power 4 team OR Notre Dame. As Clemson showed when it signed a 12-year deal with the Irish, there are plenty of teams willing to play Notre Dame.

Let's be honest about something, USC needs Notre Dame a lot more than Notre Dame needs USC.

Think about it for a minute. Since 2010, USC has been ranked going into this matchup just four times. They were ranked 12th (2016), 11th (2017), 6th (2022) and 10th (2023). Fourteen seasons worth of games and USC has only been ranked four times. Notre Dame has been ranked in each of the last seven matchups and eight of the last nine. Notre Dame was ranked in the Top 10 in three of those matchups and three times since 2010 the Irish have gone out to Los Angeles with a shot at a title on the line (2012, 2018, 2024). 

You really think Notre Dame can't find an opponent to replace USC that will only be ranked five times in 15 seasons (including 2025)? Of course they can. Then USC and replace Notre Dame with some patsy and then have fun playing Rutgers, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Purdue, Michigan State and Maryland.

I would absolutely love it if this series continued. I would love it if this game was played on the Saturday after Thanksgiving every year. In an era of tradition being destroyed for dollars, I don't want this game to go away. But if I was Notre Dame I'd be willing to move on, because the reality is this isn't the same USC program you played for over 80 years. It's not a program that values tradition anymore, it's not a program that has the "We will play anyone, anywhere, anytime" mentality that made USC a powerhouse. You aren't walking away from that USC, and that's what makes this the most disappointing.

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