USC head coach Lincoln Riley has addressed why the Trojans are not currently scheduled to play Notre Dame, suggesting the fixture could have happened "had some things come true that were said" during past discussions between the two programmes. The long-running USC-Notre Dame rivalry, one of college football's most storied non-conference series, has been dormant, and its absence is notable given the sport's growing emphasis on marquee cross-conference matchups such as Ohio State-Texas and Oklahoma-Michigan.

Riley's comments come as the 2026 college football season approaches, with observers noting a relative shortage of high-profile non-conference games compared with previous years. The remarks imply that prior conversations or commitments regarding a renewed USC-Notre Dame clash did not materialise as expected, though the article does not detail who made the original statements or when a game might be revisited.