Jeweled Shillelagh

Jeweled Shillelagh
Teams	Notre Dame Fighting Irish USC Trojans
Originated	1926
Trophy Series	Notre Dame leads, 43-34-5
Current Holder	USC
Notre Dame (43) 1926 1927 1929 1930 1934 1935 1937 1940 1941 1942 1946 1947 1949 1951 1952 1953 1954 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1963 1965 1966 1973 1977 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1995 1999 2000 2001 2010	USC (34) 1928 1931 1932 1933 1938 1939 1950 1955 1956 1962 1964 1967 1970 1971 1972 1974 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1996 1997 1998 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2009 2011
Ties (5) 1936 1948 1968 1969 1994
Vacated wins 2005 (USC)

This article is about the Notre Dame – USC trophy. For the Notre Dame – Purdue trophy, see Shillelagh Trophy.

See also: Notre Dame–USC rivalry

The Jeweled Shillelagh (shuh-LAY-lee) is the trophy awarded to the winner of the American college football rivalry game played annually by the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team of the University of Notre Dame and the USC Trojans football team of the University of Southern California. The shillelagh, an Irish club, is made of oak or blackthorn saplings from Ireland. On the end of the club is engraved, "From the Emerald Isle." The trophy was introduced in 1952 to commemorate the rivalry that began December 4, 1926.

Series history

Main article: Notre Dame–USC football rivalry

Notre Dame and USC take the field in 2007 in the 79th edition of the rivalry.

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 head 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 made by Images Jewelers of Elkhart, Indiana.

As of the end of the 2011 season, there are now 43 shamrocks, 35 Trojan heads, and five combined medallions on the shillelaghs. On June 10, 2010, the NCAA ruled that USC was guilty of a "lack of institutional control" involving the football, men's basketball and women's tennis programs. The result was the NCAA vacating all USC wins from the 2005 season, including the 2005 Notre Dame vs. USC game. It is unclear whether the trophy will be changed to reflect this decision.