There have been four significant hiatuses in the Notre Dame-Michigan football rivalry, and the next one may be the last.
A football program independent of a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) conference, the Fighting Irish have been free to form multiple historic rivalries, but there's with the Wolverines appears to be in danger. Last season, Notre Dame drubbed Michigan 31-0 and many took it as a sign the rivalry between the two was dead.
But Notre Dame head football coach Brian Kelly stated publicly that Michigan's so-called "revival" will turn the tide, ESPN reported. A proud and prestigious program, the Wolverines struggled through a 5-7 season last year before firing Brady Hoke and hiring Jim Harbaugh to turn the team around.
"I think it's trending up," Kelly said of his team's rivalry against Michigan in a recent appearance on "The Rich Eisen Show." "It's something that we need to get obviously in line to get that going. I think that's something that everybody wants to get going and get Michigan back on the schedule.
"I think that sentiment is coming back to the forefront of where college football needs to be. Some of those classic rivalries coming back together. I know we're going to be working hard to see if we can get that done."
Notre Dame began playing football in 1887 and the story goes that the Michigan team taught its counterpart how to play. After three years of regularly playing, they stopped for 10 years. In more than a century since, the two teams have had three more gaps in between strings of games.
All told, Michigan leads the all-time series against Notre Dame 24-17-1, but what makes the rivalry significant is the two programs are first and second among Division I FBS programs in all-time wins.
Notre Dame opted out of their series agreement with Michigan after last season's game, but Kelly's recent comments indicate he may want a new agreement.
