Notre Dame and USC are considered to be among the most elite programs in college football, with each school winning 11 national championships and 7 Heisman Trophies. This football rivalry, which began in 1926, is considered one of the most important rivalries in college football, and is often called greatest intersectional rivalry in college football, meaning that the rivalry is not dictated by conference affiliation or geography.
Quite often, the winner of this series has gone on to win or play for the college football national title. Both schools combined have produced the most national titles (22), Heisman trophy winners (14), All-Americans, College Football Hall of Famers and future NFL Hall of Famers (21) than any other collegiate series. Also of note is that ND and USC games count for five of the ten most-watched college football games in television history. The teams play for a trophy, called the Jeweled Shillelagh, which goes home with the winner.
Notre Dame leads the series 42-32-5, while USC has won the last six contests.
Notre Dame and USC played their first game in 1926, a 13-12 win for the Irish. Rockne was quoted as saying it was the greatest game he ever saw.
The following year, Notre Dame and USC would play a memorable game at Soldier Field in Chicago, with a slim 7-6 Irish victory. An estimated 120,000 people were in attendance, a crowd that is considered to be one of the largest attended games in NCAA history.
USC's first win in the series also came during the same year they won their first national title in 1928. From 1928-1932, USC and Notre Dame combined to win the national title five straight years, with USC winning in 1928, 1931 and 1932, and Notre Dame winning in 1929 and 1930. During this period, there was some talk of canceling the series, due to the long amount of travel time it took by train from South Bend to Los Angeles.
Rockne argued for the series against the Notre Dame faculty board and it's chair, Father Mulcaire, countering that "he saw the day coming when most college teams will be going by air exclusively..."
Amazing foresight there.