USC heavy favorite at home vs. Irish

LOS ANGELES — Matt Leinart became a Notre Dame fan at age 8, when the movie “Rudy” was released.

Thirteen years later, Leinart is the quarterback for Southern California. He’ll be doing everything he can to beat the Fighting Irish when the teams meet tonight.

“There’s nothing like playing Notre Dame at the Coliseum,” Leinart said. “I’ve never played them at home, so that’s going to be fun.”

A sellout crowd of more than 90,000 is expected for the 76th game between the teams in a series that began in 1926.

The Trojans beat the Irish by 31 points each of the past two years, thanks mainly to terrific passing performances by Carson Palmer and Leinart, who threw for 425 and 351 yards, respectively.

Those games aren’t typical of one of the most intense rivalries in sports. Notre Dame leads 42-28-5 and has a 15-5-1 record in the last 21.

Things have taken a dramatic turn the past two years, and the Trojans (10-0, 7-0 Pac-10) are favored by 23 points — one of the biggest spreads in series history.

“You can’t have a good season without beating Notre Dame, at least that’s what my father told me,” USC linebacker Lofa Tatupu said.

Tatupu’s father, Mosi, was a fullback at USC from 1974-77. The Trojans made one of college football’s most memorable comebacks against Notre Dame in 1974, scoring 55 unanswered points against the country’s top-ranked team after falling behind 24-0.

The Trojans made another big comeback 10 years earlier, rallying from a 17-0 halftime deficit to beat the top-ranked Irish 20-17.

Now it’s the Trojans who are No. 1.

Notre Dame (6-4) has had its moments this year, winning 28-20 over No. 13 Michigan and 17-13 at No. 15 Tennessee.

But the Irish were pounded 41-16 by Purdue, and are coming off a 41-38 loss to Pittsburgh.

Notre Dame coach Tyrone Willingham said it’s imperative his team brings a winning attitude into the game.

“We’ve got to carry in there a don’t worry, have fun, loose attitude, nothing to lose in this contest, and go play some very physical football,” he said. “If we take that, the right mindset, then I think our bodies will be able to perform at a level that we’ll be very comfortable with.”

It will help if Leinart can be contained to some degree. Notre Dame’s track record indicates that won’t be easy, since USC has had such incredible success passing against the Irish the past two years and the opposition has averaged 261.2 yards in the air this season.

Nevertheless, Willingham said his team will focus on stopping the run first.

“If you can stop that, now you’re better able to focus on some of the other areas,” he said.

A victory would give the Trojans their best start since 1972, when they won the national championship with a 12-0 record. More important, it would keep their current national title hopes alive.

“We are coming off a bye in a position we had hoped for at this time of year,” USC coach Pete Carroll said. “(The season) has really been a success up to this point, but we won’t be able to get all the good things unless we finish this thing right.”

Should USC beat Notre Dame, then UCLA next weekend, the Trojans will almost surely clinch a berth in the Orange Bowl for the BCS title.

The Trojans bring a 19-game winning streak into the game — second-longest in school history behind the 25-game streak in the early 1930s. USC has also won 20 consecutive games at the Coliseum to tie the school record.

“I know a lot of people don’t give us a chance,” Notre Dame defensive end Kyle Budinscak said. “That bothers me. That’s why I want to go out and prove otherwise.”