The amount of respect paid to USC in this article would make you think it was written by a Trojan, but it comes from ndoldtown at NDNation.com:

But one thing above all of this makes ND-SC the greatest rivalry in college football and that it that it is an “unrequired” rivalry. The schools are not in the same conference, nor are they two schools in the same state who must play each other like Georgia/Georgia Tech or Florida/Florida State. Notre Dame and USC don’t have to play each other and it would be easier if they did not. No regional or conference prerogatives compel the rivalry. What does is an unquenchable desire by each program to take on the best. And that is what puts this game a step up in prestige and glamor from intense “civil wars” and regional slugfests between “tech” and “state”.

It’s a lengthy article, but well worth a read. Enjoy.

Notre Dame’s Greatest Rival [NDNation.com]