
Rivalry Restored, but the Scheduling War Leaves a Wounded Legacy
Notre Dame and USC will revive their historic football rivalry after a four-year pause, with 2030-31 games starting as a Week 1 home-and-home and subsequent matchups slated for early-season dates before USC’s Big Ten schedule; the piece argues Lincoln Riley engineered the hiatus to gain playoff leverage, making the return bittersweet and highlighting how college football’s governance has sometimes prioritized revenue and optics over tradition.













