In what could be described as a seismic shake-up for college football nonconference schedules, BYU and Notre Dame have announced a home-and-home series for the 2026 and 2027 seasons. This deal brings the Fighting Irish to Provo for the first time since the Brady Quinn era in 2004 and sends the Cougars to South Bend the following year. As a result of this arrangement, the storied rivalry between Notre Dame and USC is now on hold, with their anticipated 2026 face-off being scrubbed from the schedule.
BYU's athletic director Brian Santiago depicted the matchups as marquee events for both schools. "We are excited to announce this home-and-home series between BYU and Notre Dame for the 2026 and 2027 seasons," Santiago stated in a comment picked up by Deseret News. The games are expected to highlight the coaching prowess of Kalani Sitake and Marcus Freeman, leaders of their respective teams. This development fills the void for BYU left by Cal, who canceled their series with the Cougars following the ACC's schedule changes, as reported by both the Salt Lake Tribune and JOXFM.
The alteration to the regular Notre Dame-USC rivalry came after discussions to continue the series faltered, partly due to USC's reluctance to host the late-November game, preferring an earlier season match-up. USC's move to the Big Ten and the resulting increased travel burden to the Midwest or East were also a contributing factor. "USC and Notre Dame recognize how special our rivalry is to our fans, our teams, and college football, and our institutions will continue working towards bringing back The Battle for the Jeweled Shillelagh," a joint statement from the schools explained, as quoted by JOXFM.
The series between Notre Dame and BYU is not without its own backstory; the planned games stem from a 6-game series forged as BYU was becoming football independent, of which Notre Dame later cancelled four after just two meetings. However, this new arrangement signals an apparent end to the nearly decade-long wait for Notre Dame to return the visit to Provo. The Irish are leading the historical head-to-head with a 7-2 lifetime record against the Cougars, according to Deseret News. The most recent match-up saw a Notre Dame victory over BYU 28-20 in the Shamrock Series game held in Las Vegas last year.
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