USC vs. Stanford History At A Glance- A Rivalry 100+ Years In The Making

Originally posted on LAFB Network | By Ryan Anderson | Last updated 9/8/23

It’s hard to write a better story than the one told by USC vs. Stanford. Both are considered the most prestigious California private schools, with proud academic and athletic lineage. Stanford is seen as a West Coast Ivy and SC boasts an underrated clout within academia sitting #25 on USA Today’s College Rankings. USC has the sporting edge with a total of 135 national championships. Stanford is right behind with 134. When it comes to football though, the 11 USC Trojans trophies dwarf Stanford’s Two with the most recent coming in before World War II.

USC vs. Stanford History: The End Of An Era

With USC’s move to the Big 10 and Stanford’s joining the ACC, it will mark the end of this century-old tradition. The only six years in which the rivalry was not played since 1919 were in 1921, and 1924, the three years of World War II (1943–1945), and the Covid season in 2020.

USC vs. Stanford History: Tale of the Tape

This meeting will mark the 102nd time the two teams have met with the first game played in 1918. The combined record favors SC significantly; 64-34-3. The longest winning streak is 12 games held by the Trojans from 1958-1969. But between 1958 and 1990, Stanford won only three games; 1970, 71,75. That 32 years of dominance accounts for the margin for a good chunk of the all-time series. Stanford’s longest is 4 games, more recently from 2009-2012

The last five tilts have gone for USC 3 times and Stanford 2 times.

The teams have played in two PAC-12 Championship games, 2015 and 2017

This article first appeared on LAFB Network and was syndicated with permission.

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