College Football: Top 15 rivalry games we’d like to see return in 2020

5. Michigan State vs. Notre Dame

Games played: 79
Series record: Notre Dame leads 47-29-1
Last played: 2017
Trophies: Megaphone Trophy
Next meeting: 2026

Like their series against the Wolverines, Notre Dame’s rivalry with Michigan State is a long standing matchup dating back to 1897. The series between the Fighting Irish and Spartans has been a back and forth tug of war, with each program having sustained periods of success against the other.

Notre Dame started the series off strong, winning 15 of the first 17 games, but the battle for the Megaphone Trophy has been even since Michigan State’s rise in the 1950s.

After a rocky start to the rivalry, Michigan State would then end Notre Dame’s stretch of dominance, winning eight of the next nine games, often with each team ranked in the top 15 or higher. After Notre Dame won three titles in the 1940s, the two programs met as national powers in the 1950s and 1960s with Michigan State winning four titles in the 1950s.

The Spartans claimed the 1965 title, while both programs recognize the 1966 title as their own after their 10-10 tie, in what was proclaimed as the “Game of the Century”, left both programs undefeated.

Ara Parseghian’s No. 1 Notre Dame team went to East Lansing to face Duffy Daughtery’s No. 2 Spartans. The Irish had outscored their opponents 301-21 entering the match and had not let up a point in their previous two games. Michigan State, fresh off a national title season, was confident with the home crowd behind them after not losing to Notre Dame in East Lansing since the 1949 season. Despite taking an early 10-0 lead and putting the Irish on upset alert, Notre Dame closed the score 10-7, heading into the half.

Notre Dame tied the game up in the fourth quarter and had a chance to take the lead, but failed after a missed field goal attempt. The ending of the game created much controversy after Parseghian had his offense chew out the clock after receiving the ball on their own 30 with just over a minute left in the game instead of attempting to drive down the field for another field goal attempt.

With starting quarterback, Terry Hanratty getting knocked out in the first quarter, Parseghian chose to not risk a turnover and take a 10-10 draw to enter their season finale against USC.

As Notre Dame would go on to blow out No. 10 USC the following week in Los Angeles, 51-0, the Irish and Spartans would both finish the season undefeated along with 11-0 Alabama, with each of the programs claiming a share in the title. The two continued their series almost every year from the 1949 season through the last math-up in 2017 with brief breaks in between.

After the Megaphone Trophy was introduced in 1949, the series between the two has been led by Notre Dame at 33-27-1.

As the scores from the previous games are recorded on the half green, half blue megaphone, the two schools are on their third copy trophy with the previous two fully marked.

With the rivalry going on hiatus from 2017 to the next matchup in 2026, the battle for the Megaphone Trophy, another enticing September matchup will be on its longest break since the gap from 1921 through the long running installment in 1948.