College football fans ‘gotta accept’ change, Lincoln Riley says as USC-Notre Dame series hangs in balance

USC is at the epicenter of college football’s paradigm shifts, and Lincoln Riley said that fans ought to embrace the significant changes hitting the sport in the conference realignment, NIL and transfer portal eras. It was the Trojans’ move to the Big Ten that preceded the Pac-12’s downfall and further separation between their new conference, the SEC and the rest of the FBS. And now, their annual series with Notre Dame is in peril as one of the nation’s most storied rivalries stands on the brink of dormancy.

This season’s USC-Notre Dame battle is the last one on the schools’ current contract, and the Trojans are reportedly reluctant to commit to a long-term extension. Sports Illustrated reported that USC is uncertain about the series’ impact on its College Football Playoff hopes, considering the demands that come with playing a Big Ten schedule.

“There are some changes that we’ve all just gotta accept, because it’s just part of it right now,” Riley said on “Always College Football.” “Obviously that continues to move, and we’ll see how it evolves. But I think any door that closes, there’s also a new, really exciting door that’s getting opened. I think we can still love what was in the past, but let’s don’t miss that there’s some pretty cool things happening right in front of our faces right now that we’re kind of all in the forefront of.”

USC helped usher in a new college football era last season with its Big Ten-opening duel against Michigan. A contest previously reserved for Rose Bowls and marquee non-conference battles became just another week in the Big Ten.

“If you love college football, then are you going to scroll on your TV past USC-Ohio State? No, you’re not,” said Riley. “All of these things have to start somewhere. Is there some changes that I understand people are having a hard time coming to grips with? Sure. I get it. But the alternative is pretty darn good. It’s creating some incredible matchups.”

The USC-Notre Dame rivalry would not be the first to go on the shelf as a byproduct of conference realignment and playoff expansion. The Bedlam series, for one, went dormant last season when Oklahoma moved to the SEC.

Scheduling concerns are far from the only grips fans, coaches and administrators spoke out against during the latest waves of broad-sweeping change. Unmitigated transfer portal and NIL chaos wreaks havoc on the sport each and every offseason. Riley pushed back against some of the negativity that spawns from those challenges, too.

“Our sport’s in a great place,” Riley said. “We still have one of the greatest products in the greatest sport in the world. Let’s don’t forget that.”