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Keyshawn Johnson blasts USC over ending Notre Dame rivalry: 'Just say we scared'

IMG_0985by: Griffin McVeigh12/22/25griffin_mcveigh

News broke on Monday of the rivalry between Notre Dame and USC going on a break. There will be no matchup between the two during the 2026 season, possibly picking back up in 2030. Most are not taking the news well, with former Trojans star wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson being one of them.

Johnson posted a rant on X, saying, “Just say we scared” as the caption. He went in on the athletic department for making this decision, claiming they are running from Notre Dame just because the on-field results are not great.

“I don’t know what the f is going on with our athletic department,” Johnson said. “We’ve got people in there that are not Trojans, that don’t know anything about being Trojans, running our athletic department… Why don’t we just not play football? How about that? We not going to play Notre Dame again, possibly, until 2030, is what I’m understanding. That doesn’t make any sense… We running from teams now? We running from Notre Dame? Hell, why don’t we run from Oregon and Michigan and Ohio State and Wisconsin? Why don’t we just not be in a conference? … Why would we cancel our biggest rivalry? Because we can’t beat them? It makes zero sense.”

Some harsh words also came for USC head coach Lincoln Riley. This has been a major topic in recent months (even years) for Riley when it comes to the future of the Notre Dame rivalry. Johnson says this should not be Riley’s decision since he may not even be with the program in years to come.

“We got a head coach that knows nothing about being a Trojan,” Johnson said. ” … I’m not one of go in on the USC football coach. But if I can remember correctly, I had Lincoln Riley talking about ‘Well, I don’t know if I want to play them in the future.’ You ain’t going to be here in the future. Especially if you keep missing the playoffs. You not going to be here in the future, I promise you that.”

This series goes all the way back to 1926 and consecutively from 1946 until COVID-19 in 2020 brought another pause in the action. Notre Dame holds the all-time series lead 51-37-5 and has been on top a lot in recent seasons. Seven of the last eight have gone in favor of the Irish, including a three-game win streak.