Trench Warfare: Notre Dame Asserts Its Identity Against USC Once Again

Marcus Freeman said it best on Saturday night: “That’s our foundation. That’s who we have to be.” Against USC, his team looked like it. In a rivalry built on decades of physical football, Notre Dame delivered its most physical performance of the season up front, overpowering the Trojans for a 34–24 win in front of another sellout crowd in South Bend.

The Irish rushed for a season-high 306 yards on 44 carries — an average of 7.0 yards per attempt — while holding USC to 68 rushing yards on 29 attempts (2.3 avg). It was the clearest statement yet that Notre Dame’s identity begins and ends in the trenches.

Offensive Line Leads the Way

Notre Dame’s offensive front controlled the game from the opening drive. Making his first career start at center, Joe Otting anchored a unit that paved the way for the one-two punch of Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price and kept pressure out of CJ Carr’s face for most of the night.

Freeman praised Otting’s readiness and the guards beside him for steadying the line. “Proud of the way Joe stepped up. Those guards beside him helped him tremendously. The moment wasn’t too big. We’ll go back and grade it and see how we can get better, but you’re not rushing for those type of yards unless you’ve got O-linemen blocking.”

Notre Dame’s ground game set the tone immediately. On the Irish’s first possession, Jeremiyah Love burst through a crease for 63 yards, and one play later scored from 12 out to tie the game. Love finished with 24 carries for 228 yards and a touchdown, averaging 9.5 yards per rush — the most ever by a Notre Dame player inside Notre Dame Stadium and the sixth-highest single-game total in school history.

Beside him, Jadarian Price added 13 carries for 87 yards and a score, giving Notre Dame its first 300-yard rushing performance since November 2023.

Defense Delivers on the Other Side of the Line

While the offense punished USC on the ground, the defense dismantled the Trojans’ run game. USC managed just 68 rushing yards, with lead back King Miller limited to 70 yards on 18 carries (3.9 avg) and no touchdowns. Quarterback Jayden Maiava was sacked twice and pressured throughout.

Freeman said the game plan was simple but essential: “We challenged them to say, ‘Let’s make them one-dimensional, right? We can’t let them run the ball at will and throw the ball at will.’”

Notre Dame’s front seven met that challenge. Boubacar Traore recorded a sack and Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa added another. The defense totaled six tackles for loss and forced three turnovers — two interceptions and a fumble recovery.

The emphasis on physicality extended to the defensive backs as well. Freeman later pointed to the effort of players like Christian Gray, who rebounded from an early mistake with a key interception. “You’ve got to do your job and play with the proper technique. Nobody has sympathy. Keep battling.”

A Game Built for the Trenches

Freeman didn’t shy away from the kind of football he wanted this rivalry to become. “It was going to be an O-line, D-line driven game. We weren’t going to be able to throw the ball a lot in the second half because of the moisture and the weather,” he said. “That’s what we want. That’s our edge. We’ve got to play the game in a physical manner that maybe not every team wants to play.”

With heavy rain setting in and footing deteriorating, Notre Dame’s style became an advantage. The Irish possessed the ball for 32:58 compared to USC’s 27:02, converting key short-yardage plays that drained the clock.

Even Freeman acknowledged afterward that the elements favored his team’s blueprint. It was the kind of grinding, bloody game he’d envisioned all week — and one his players embraced.

Foundation Restored

From the first snap to the final kneel-down, Notre Dame dictated the terms. The Irish outgained USC 442–396, won the turnover battle 3–1, and scored four rushing touchdowns to the Trojans’ none.

The numbers backed up the message Freeman has been repeating since fall camp — toughness, resilience, and control up front. “We’ve never strayed away from that,” he said. “That’s our foundation. That’s who we have to be.”

Saturday night, his team lived it.