On Tuesday, the College Football Playoff committee released its latest set of rankings. Obviously, 6-5 USC was nowhere to be found in the top 25. To make matters worse for USC fans, Trojan archrival Notre Dame currently sits as the No. 5 team in the country. Obviously, the thought of the hated Fighting Irish going to the playoff while the Trojans spend December at a low-tier bowl does not sit well with USC football fans. However, the Trojans do have an incredible opportunity in front of them this weekend.
With Notre Dame not a member of a conference, Saturday marks the final game of the season for the Irish. Should they win at the Coliseum, Notre Dame would be pretty much a lock to not only make the playoff, but also host a first round game.
Hence, the Trojans have an opportunity to play spoiler here. If USC were able to upset Notre Dame, it would certainly prevent their archrivals from hosting a playoff game, and potentially knock them out of the field altogether.
It has certainly been a frustrating season for USC. But if the Trojans could upset their hated foes from South Bend and knock them out of national title contention, it would go a long way towards alleviating the pain.
It should be noted that USC had similar opportunities to spoil Notre Dame’s BCS/playoff hopes in both 2012 and 2018. Both times, however, the Trojans came up short, falling 22-13 and 24-17, respectively, and allowing the Irish to advance to the postseason.
Could the third time playing spoiler be the charm?
Kickoff between USC and Notre Dame is set for 12:30 p.m. local time on Saturday on CBS.
Visit our friends at Fighting Irish Wire, Buffaloes Wire, Ducks Wire, UW Huskies Wire and UCLA Wire.