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USC Trojans head football coach Lincoln Riley is pointing fingers toward South Bend, Indiana.
The USC-Notre Dame football rivalry is one of the best in the sport, but it’s come to an end as both programs were unable to come to an agreement on an extension to play each other for the 2026-27 season series.
Riley made an appearance in front of the media before his Trojans face TCU in the Valero Alamo Bowl, where he didn’t mind taking a shot at the Fighting Irish.
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Head coach Lincoln Riley of the USC Trojans looks on prior to a game against the UCLA Bruins at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Nov. 29, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Harry How/Getty Images)
“It’s pretty simple. We both worked for months to try to find a solution,” Riley explained, per The New York Post. “Notre Dame was very vocal about the fact that they would play us anytime, anywhere. Obviously, them not having a conference affiliation gives them an ability to be pretty flexible with their scheduling.
“We went back, Jen Cohen, our A.D., went back to Notre Dame roughly a couple of weeks ago with a scenario and a proposal that would extend the series for the next two years. That proposal was rejected.”
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Riley wasn’t done, though. He didn’t like how Notre Dame quickly found a new opponent after the rejection.
“Not only was it rejected, five minutes after we got the call, it was announced that they had scheduled another opponent, which I’ll give them credit. That might be the fastest scheduling act in college football history,” he said.
The team Notre Dame went with instead of USC was BYU, agreeing to a home-and-home series instead of going with their usual rival on the schedule.
Meanwhile, USC is still trying to figure out who will fill out their schedule.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman reacts after an Irish touchdown against the Pittsburgh Panthers during the second quarter at Acrisure Stadium on Nov. 15, 2025. (Charles LeClaire/Imagn Images)
Since 1926, the Trojans and Fighting Irish have been butting heads on the gridiron, playing 96 times with only four missed games over that span.
And those missed games? Three from 1943-45 due to World War II and one in the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We took Notre Dame at their word that they would play us anytime, anywhere,” Riley added. “Had Notre Dame lived up to their word and played us anytime, anywhere, we would be playing in the next two years, and looking ahead after that, hopefully continuing the series.”
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Instead the all-time series for the two storied programs will continue to sit at 51-37-5 in favor of the Fighting Irish.
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