Notre Dame won’t play USC for the first time since 1945 or Navy for the first time since 1926. The Irish also won’t duel a Big Ten opponent for the first time since Knute Rockne became coach.
Most of this was known before the ACC released its schedule Thursday morning, but it still is strange to see a Notre Dame schedule with Western Michigan instead of Navy — thus ends college football’s longest continuous intersectional rivalry.
The schools tried to schedule the game, but Notre Dame essentially opted to join the ACC this season for football and the conference stipulated that its one non-league game had to be played within the state of the member school.