USC vs. Notre Dame: Should Winner Enter Top 25?

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the USC Trojans are very proud programs that have fallen on hard times. Both programs are looking to rebound and get back into the national spotlight. When the two teams take the field tonight it will show just how far they have come, and how much further they need to go.

Since this is a national televised game between two big football programs, the winner should get noticed when the latest college football rankings are released. This is not due to the fact that they are on national television, but because the added exposure will help the voters realize that these two programs are ready to get back into the mix.

Despite playing underneath a cloud of sanctions and allegations, USC has performed very well this year with the only blemish coming in a game at Arizona State. They just completed a road blowout on national television against California, and after Notre Dame will take on Stanford. A win at South Bend with the way that the Irish are playing should be enough to get the Trojans in the Top 25.

The Irish's stumble out of the gate to start the season was well documented, but they have righted the ship and are now playing excellent football. The bottom of the top 25 has two teams with two losses, so that should not exclude the Irish from entering into the top 25 with a win against USC.

The bottom line is whichever team wins should find a spot in the top 25 of the college football rankings.

James Brown is a B/R Featured Columnist. Feel free to contact James at [e-mail] or follow on Twitter.