Brian VanGorder's defense will need to bounce back when Notre Dame faces Arizona State. (USATSI)
Brian VanGorder's defense will need to bounce back when Notre Dame faces Arizona State. (USATSI)

The 86th meeting between Southern California and Notre Dame will take place Nov. 29. (ND leads the series, 45-35-5, and has won the past two meetings). As the two programs progress toward rivalry week, we'll take a weekly look at current trends, and the current state of hostilities, between the Trojans and the Fighting Irish.

Days until game: 24

2014 Notre Dame-USC power index: 1. Notre Dame (7-1); 2. USC (6-3)

Notre Dame last week: Notre Dame was back on the field for the first time since its heartbreak in Tallahassee, and despite a winning effort, the results were a little shaky, especially for a team trying to impress the College Football Playoff committee. The Jekyll-and-Hyde ND defense allowed 454 yards in the 49-39 win over Navy in Landover, and the Irish surrendered 24 straight points to fall behind late in the third quarter. Everett Golson brought the Irish back, accounting for six of ND's seven touchdowns and becoming the first Irish player to both rush and pass for three scores in the same game. The committee was none too impressed, keeping Notre Dame at No. 10 in the latest rankings revealed Tuesday.

USC last week: The Trojans recovered from their loss at Utah in style, going to Pullman and routing Washington State, 44-17, in a game most notable for a gruesome broken leg suffered by WSU quarterback Connor Halliday. Cody Kessler had one of his best games, throwing for 400 yards and five touchdowns, with Nelson Agholor (8 receptions, 220 yards) starring as well. The win, coupled with losses for Utah and Arizona, pushed Steve Sarkisian's team within a half-game of Arizona State in the Pac-12 South. It also made the Trojans bowl-eligible. (Jerry Palm has USC facing Wisconsin in the San Francisco Bowl.) 

Notre Dame this week: at Arizona State, 3:30 ET 

USC this week: Bye

Notre Dame storyline: This is largely seen as a playoff elimination game for both the Irish and the emerging Sun Devils (7-1), who vaulted into the No. 9 position in the committee rankings after extending their win streak to four with a win over Utah. ND fans will be hoping the 'good' Irish defense, last spotted in a 17-14 win over Stanford about a month ago, shows up. Brian VanGorder's 'D' has allowed 37.7 points over its last three games, and will be facing an ASU offense that averages 483 yards per game. 

USC storyline: It's a bye week for the Trojans, who will next be seen in a Thursday night showdown against Cal at The Coliseum. The Golden Bears (5-4, 3-4 Pac-12) have been competitive and scored a bunch of points this season, so Sarkisian and Co. will need to not get caught looking ahead to UCLA. The bye week will also give defensive playermaker Su'a Cravens some extra time to get healthy. 

Moment in hatestory: October 21, 1989

It's a brawl! Details remain sketchy all these years later, but apparently top-ranked Notre Dame was running off the field during pregame and disrupted USC's precious punt return drill. Fisticuffs ensued. In the melee, a Notre Dame security guy was mauled by some Fighting Irish players, who mistook his yellow slicker for USC garb. Todd Marinovich was there, as was Tony Rice. USC coach Larry Smith took some issue with a spot at a key juncture in the game and shed some light on this rather dramatic conversation with an official: "I just asked him how he could sleep at night," Smith said. "How could he look himself in the mirror?" Alas, ND reeled off its 19th straight win, prevailing by a 28-24 margin to claim its seventh straight win in the series.

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