Latest news with #PatForde
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Report: Notre Dame football could see its long-standing rivalry with USC coming to an end
When USC joined the Big Ten, many wondered what would come of its rivalry with Notre Dame football, and on Monday, there was some clarity on the issue. The Irish recently announced a multi-year battle with Clemson, but Sports Illustrated's Pat Forde is reporting that the Trojans games could be a major question going forward. Notre Dame's athletic director Pete Bevacqua wants the rivalry to continue, as he told Forde 'I think Southern Cal and Notre Dame should play every year for as long as college football is played.' Advertisement The Irish want to continue playing USC every year, but that might not exactly be how the Trojans see it. Forde is reporting that 'USC has expressed reluctance to enter into a long-term deal due to uncertainty about the future College Football Playoff format, and while assessing the demands of greater travel as a member of the Big Ten.' At this point in time, not many know if Notre Dame and USC will continue playing each other, but we do know that both sides do want to be part of this tradition. The question is will they be able to work out a deal in the near future. This article originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire: There is potential that Notre Dame and USC could end its rivalry
Los Angeles Times
21-05-2025
- Sport
- Los Angeles Times
USC pushes for annual Notre Dame series renewal until CFP automatic bids are clarified
With the contract between USC and Notre Dame set to expire and one of college football's most storied rivalries in serious danger of ending, officials at USC extended an offer to Notre Dame earlier this month in hopes of continuing the historic series for at least one more season — through the fall of 2026 — a person familiar with the negotiations not authorized to discuss them publicly told The Times. The future of the rivalry beyond that, in the eyes of USC's leaders, hinges in large part on what happens with the format of the College Football Playoff — namely, the number of automatic qualifiers guaranteed to the Big Ten in future playoff fields. And until those questions are answered, USC leaders agree the best course forward for its century-old rivalry with Notre Dame would be to continue their arrangement one season at a time. Anything else would be 'a strategically bad decision,' a USC source said. That timeline is where the two rivals find themselves at an impasse. Notre Dame is seeking a long-term extension of the series, and in an interview with Sports Illustrated earlier this week, Irish athletic director Pete Bevacqua not so subtly suggested that it was USC putting the rivalry at risk. 'I think Southern Cal and Notre Dame should play every year for as long as college football is played,' he told SI's Pat Forde, 'and SC knows that's how we feel.' The two blueblood programs have played 95 times since 1924, when the story goes that the wife of legendary Notre Dame coach Knute Rockne convinced her husband to schedule the series so she could visit Southern California every other year. In the century since, only World War II and the COVID-19 pandemic have stood in the way of USC and Notre Dame meeting on the football field. Between them, the two rivals boast 16 national titles, more than any other teams that play an annual college football series. They're scheduled to meet again in October in South Bend. What happens to the historic series after that matchup may come down to who blinks in a high-stakes game of chicken between the two schools. USC has no plans to budge on its position without clarity over whether the Big Ten will have four automatic qualifiers in any future playoff format, a source told The Times. With nine conference games already built into the schedule and the possibility of an annual crossover matchup with the Southeastern Conference still on their radar, USC officials see no reason to commit long term to the Notre Dame matchup without assurances they wouldn't be punished for scheduling such a marquee nonconference matchup. The demands of Big Ten travel have also been a part of the conversation at USC, to the point officials broached the potential with Notre Dame of moving the game to the first month of the season. The hope was to better balance its future slate of travel to the Midwest and East Coast. Last season, in their Big Ten debut, the Trojans lost all four of their Big Ten road trips. But Notre Dame was not receptive to the idea of moving the game, which traditionally has been played in the latter half of the football season. The Irish agreed earlier this month to a 12-year home-and-home scheduling agreement with Clemson. But while that deal seemed like a precursor to moving on from the USC series, Sports Illustrated reported this week that it was not expected to stand in the way of continuing with the Trojans. Uncertainty has loomed over the rivalry since last summer when USC coach Lincoln Riley was first asked about its future at Big Ten media days. Riley said at the time that he hoped to continue the series, but hinted pretty strongly at the possibility that USC could drop the game if it would better position the team to win a national title 'I know it means a lot to a lot of people,' Riley said. 'The purist in you [says] no doubt. Now if you get in a position where you got to make a decision on what's best for SC to help us win a national championship vs. keep that [game], shoot, then you got to look at it. 'And listen, we're not the first example of that. Look all the way across the country. There have been a lot of other teams sacrificing rivalry games. And I'm not saying that's what's going to happen. But as we get into this playoff structure, and if it changes or not, we're in this new conference, we're going to learn something about this as we go and what the right and the best track is to winning a national championship, that's going to evolve.' Those comments led many to point fingers at Riley for laying the groundwork for the rivalry's possible demise. But as the two sides now stand at an impasse, a person familiar with the discussion at USC insisted that any decision on the series and its future would come from athletic director Jennifer Cohen. She'll have plenty to weigh on that front in the coming months, with both schools likely to dig in their heels for the long haul, slinging mud at one another in the meantime.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
New report suggests USC-Notre Dame football rivalry is in danger of ending
It is certainly a tense time at USC football, particularly regarding the future of the USC-Notre Dame football rivalry. The two schools, who have met every year but one since World War II, do not currently have a contract for the series beyond 2026. On Monday, Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated reported that the series appears to be in serious jeopardy. According to Forde, "USC has expressed reluctance to enter into a long-term deal due to uncertainty about the future College Football Playoff format, and while assessing the demands of greater travel as a member of the Big Ten. USC has broached the idea of moving the game to a season-opening spot on the schedule, sources tell SI." Advertisement Forde later updated the story to include statements from both USC and Notre Dame officials. "'We want the USC–Notre Dame rivalry to continue, which is why we offered an extension of our agreement,' USC associate athletic director Cody Worsham tells SI. 'It's a special game to our fans and our institution. We will continue to work with Notre Dame on scheduling future games.'" Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua added, "I think Southern Cal and Notre Dame should play every year for as long as college football is played, and SC knows that's how we feel." While college football has changed a ton over the decades, the USC-Notre Dame rivalry is one of the few constants that has remained constant. Hopefully, the two schools will be able to come to an agreement, and one of the great rivalries in all of sports will not fall victim to the new era of college athletics. This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Report suggests USC-Notre Dame football rivalry could soon be stopped
USA Today
20-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
New report suggests USC-Notre Dame football rivalry is in danger of ending
New report suggests USC-Notre Dame football rivalry is in danger of ending There is legitimate reason to worry about the future of the USC-Notre Dame football series, and the Trojans are the ones unsure of whether they want this rivalry to continue. It is certainly a tense time at USC football, particularly regarding the future of the USC-Notre Dame football rivalry. The two schools, who have met every year but one since World War II, do not currently have a contract for the series beyond 2026. On Monday, Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated reported that the series appears to be in serious jeopardy. According to Forde, "USC has expressed reluctance to enter into a long-term deal due to uncertainty about the future College Football Playoff format, and while assessing the demands of greater travel as a member of the Big Ten. USC has broached the idea of moving the game to a season-opening spot on the schedule, sources tell SI." Forde later updated the story to include statements from both USC and Notre Dame officials. "'We want the USC–Notre Dame rivalry to continue, which is why we offered an extension of our agreement,' USC associate athletic director Cody Worsham tells SI. 'It's a special game to our fans and our institution. We will continue to work with Notre Dame on scheduling future games.'" Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua added, "I think Southern Cal and Notre Dame should play every year for as long as college football is played, and SC knows that's how we feel." While college football has changed a ton over the decades, the USC-Notre Dame rivalry is one of the few constants that has remained constant. Hopefully, the two schools will be able to come to an agreement, and one of the great rivalries in all of sports will not fall victim to the new era of college athletics.
USA Today
19-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Report: Notre Dame football could see its long-standing rivalry with USC coming to an end
Report: Notre Dame football could see its long-standing rivalry with USC coming to an end When USC joined the Big Ten, many wondered what would come of its rivalry with Notre Dame football, and on Monday, there was some clarity on the issue. The Irish recently announced a multi-year battle with Clemson, but Sports Illustrated's Pat Forde is reporting that the Trojans games could be a major question going forward. Notre Dame's athletic director Pete Bevacqua wants the rivalry to continue, as he told Forde 'I think Southern Cal and Notre Dame should play every year for as long as college football is played.' The Irish want to continue playing USC every year, but that might not exactly be how the Trojans see it. Forde is reporting that 'USC has expressed reluctance to enter into a long-term deal due to uncertainty about the future College Football Playoff format, and while assessing the demands of greater travel as a member of the Big Ten.' At this point in time, not many know if Notre Dame and USC will continue playing each other, but we do know that both sides do want to be part of this tradition. The question is will they be able to work out a deal in the near future.
