Jeweled Shillelagh

College Football Rivalries

2.54 (35 votes)

Invite Your Friends to Rate

[edit] Summary

The Jeweled Shillelagh (shuh-LAY-lee) is passed between the annual winner of the college football game between the University of Southern California Trojans and the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

[edit] History

The USC-Notre Dame rivalry is played each year for a shillelagh, a Gaelic war club made of oak or blackthorn saplings from Ireland. On the end of the club is engraved, "From the Emerald Isle." The trophy was originally presented in 1952 by the Notre Dame Alumni Club of Los Angeles, stating that "this shillelagh will serve to symbolize in part the high tradition, the keen rivalry and above all the sincere respect which these two great universities have for each other."

For each victory, a respective jeweled ornament is added to the foot-long club. For each USC victory, a ruby-adorned Trojan heads is added, marked with the year and game score; for each Notre Dame victory, a similarly detailed emerald-studded shamrock is added. For tie games, a combined Trojan head/shamrock medallion is used (the NCAA has since changed the rules to allow no tie games since 1996). Although the shillelagh was introduced in 1952, the medallions go back to the start of the series in 1926.

When the original shillelagh ran out of space for the Trojan heads and shamrocks after the 1989 game, it was retired and is permanently displayed at Notre Dame. A new shillelagh, longer than the original, was introduced for the 1997 season with medallions going back to the 1990 game.

There are now 42 shamrocks, 31 Trojan heads and five combined medallions on the shillelaghs.

[edit] Results

Notre Dame victories are shaded ██ green. USC victories shaded in ██ red. Ties shaded white.

[edit] Series facts

† These two were the only instances in which the losing team scored over 28 points.