Report: USC booster threatens to take Trojans out of will if Notre Dame series is canceled

Reports stating that the USC–Notre Dame rivalry may end in the near future made headlines earlier this week. In turn, backlash from the potential end of a century-long bitter relationship between the two longtime college football powers has been present from fans on social media, to boosters backing these programs.

The latter happens to be the case for the Trojans. According to Inside USC, there are check-writers behind the scenes raising their own concern about the series potentially ending. One booster said that “he will take USC out of his will if the rivalry is canceled.” That’s how much this rivalry means to some members of the Trojans fanbase — even the ones at the top.

The first matchup between USC and Notre Dame came in 1924, playing 95 times since that date. However, scheduling conflicts appear to be at the heart of the potential collapse. According to Pat Forde, he reported that USC offered a one-year extension to play the rivalry in Los Angeles in 2026 (2025’s matchup will be played in South Bend), while Notre Dame desires more of a long-term deal.

Higher ups in both programs have expressed their desire to extend the series past the already scheduled 2025 matchup. However, polarizing opinions on how to proceed with it has kept the outcome up in the air.

It’s unclear whether the greater argument of scheduling high-profile opponents in the non-conference split opinions even farther. On one hand, continuing to play high-profile opponents before their conference games promote these sort of rivalry games which provide exciting experiences for fans and players alike. It helps with exposure, additional revenue, etc.

On the other hand — teams would be possibly giving up a loss for those things previously mentioned. This could impact their final standing in the College Football Playoffs race, potentially losing out on hosting privileges in the first round.

Of course, this is not an issue for the independent Fighting Irish, who are unattached to any conference in football. Their schedule is typically a mix of big-time college football opponents, and G5 teams looking for a payday, so having someone like USC annually on their schedule is a massive plus. It provides them a quality opponent, while also satisfying the rivalry aspect of their yearly matchups.

Now that the CFP has restructured its seeding model to allow the top four ranked teams to receive a first-round bye, Notre Dame’s need to schedule matchups like this is less severe under these new rules. Whether this has been taken into account regarding the final decision on the rivalry remains to be seen, but it’s no longer surprising to see longtime non-conference rivalries dissipate in the current landscape. Notre Dame and USC may be next.