The Penn State and Notre Dame rivalry everyone forgot about, explained
Penn State and Notre Dame are two programs with a long, rich history of success in the college football world.
They've both succeeded at the highest level, winning big bowl games and national championships throughout their existence. I say all that to say that this matchup that we're getting on Thursday night comes with a lot of history.
A big chunk of it goes forgotten, though.
When we watch this matchup today, most people will think it is just a game between two of the best schools in the country. On the surface, that's exactly what it is.
But when you dig a bit deeper into the history between these schools, you realize that there's an intense rivalry between the two sides that has laid dormant for decades and might now have a chance to come back to the forefront. These two schools hated each other through the 1980s.
Penn State and Notre Dame are rivals?
They were for a while. There was a stretch of 12 years in a row when Penn State and Notre Dame played each other every year. They called it the 12-year war, according to Sports Illustrated. It lasted from 1981 until 1992.
During that stretch, Penn State went 8-4 against Notre Dame, including in 1990, when the Nittany Lions upset the No. 1 seeded Fighting Irish.
Here's more from SI:
"The Penn State-Notre Dame rivalry hit a new peak in 1990. Penn State, ranked No. 18 at the time, upset the No. 1 Fighting Irish, 24-21, in South Bend. Terry Smith, a former wide receiver and the Nittany Lions’ current cornerbacks coach, and Al Golden, now Notre Dame’s defensive coordinator, both caught touchdown passes for Penn State in its comeback effort."
Wow. I didn't know that. Why did the rivalry end?
The last game was the 1992 Snow Bowl, where Notre Dame won 17-16.
The rivalry essentially ended when Penn State joined the Big Ten in 1993. Penn State was previously independent and could schedule its games without considering conferences. Once that ended, Notre Dame fell off the schedule and the rivalry died.
Have Notre Dame and Penn State played since?
They've played twice since 1992. Their last game against one another was in 2007 when Derrick Williams' punt return sparked a 31-10 win for the Nittany Lions.
Overall, the two schools have played 19 times and have a record of 9-9-1 between the sides.
Not only does whoever wins here get a chance to play for a national championship, but they also get a slight advantage in this renewed rivalry for who-knows-how-long.
There's a lot at stake here, folks.
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This article originally appeared on For The Win: The Penn State and Notre Dame rivalry everyone forgot about, explained
