The stakes are different, and yet it doesn't feel as if that matters much Saturday.

No. 5-ranked Notre Dame (10-1) is looking to lock up a spot in the College Football Playoff field with a win, while USC (6-5) is just hoping to remind a national college football audience that its record only tells part of the story of this season and what could have been.

Mired at 4-5 a few weeks ago, coach Lincoln Riley asserted to his team the importance of maximizing the final three games -- especially the two rivalry contests at the end of the schedule.

The Trojans have responded with wins over Nebraska and crosstown rival UCLA with a chance to end on a high note if they can upset the rival Fighting Irish and perhaps spoil their postseason pursuit (though there's still a path for Notre Dame to potentially make the playoff field even with a loss).

Ultimately, this game packs its own importance annually regardless of circumstances.

"I think it's always an important game. It's a rivalry game. There's a lot of history behind it. It's two great programs. It's obviously another one that's played in iconic places. I just think when you come here, the history behind this game is so epic. It just is," Riley said. "So I just think, No. 1, I think it would be disrespectful to not be as ready as you possibly can be -- coaches, players, everybody. And the fact for us, it's obviously our last game in the Coliseum, we've got a lot of great Trojans on this team, it'll be their last game. We got a chance to really close great with this three-game stretch here at the end of the season, and obviously a phenomenal opportunity to finish this thing the way that we intend on finishing it. I love it, I love rivalry games, can't wait for it to get here."

USC will have a bowl game regardless, having clinched eligibility last week with the 19-13 win over UCLA.

The Cornhuskers and Bruins are middle-of-the-pack Big Ten teams, though. A win over Notre Dame -- which has won nine straight since a final-minute 16-14 upset loss to Northern Illinois in Week 2, and which leads all of college football in scoring margin this season (+301) -- would do a lot more to springboard the Trojans into bowl prep and the offseason.

RELATED: Matchup Breakdown: Scouting Notre Dame | Opposing View: Perspective from a Notre Dame insider | Recruiting visitor list: Trojans host several top targets Saturday

Our TrojanSports.com staff discusses the storylines and keys to victory for USC ahead of kickoff at 12:30 p.m. PT in the Coliseum on Saturday.

How would a win over Notre Dame on Saturday change the feeling about this team coming out of the season?

Ryan Young: "First, I think it would just reiterate what this season could have potentially been. That's not the most positive spin to put on it, but it's reality. If USC closes out the schedule by beating a team that has been blowing out every opponent for two months, then you again look back at those five narrow losses all at the end of games and lament how this season came unraveled well short of its potential for the Trojans. To reiterate the stat once more, only six teams in the country entering this week had led in the fourth quarter of every game. USC is one and has five losses -- the other five had five losses combined.

"That said, sure, it would help. Especially if it leads to the Trojans closing on another prospect or two before signing day next week. Ultimately, Lincoln Riley was at a crossroads a few weeks ago with a growing portion of the fan base questioning exactly where this program was going under his leadership. Finishing 7-5 in the regular-season isn't going to assuage all those concerns, but winning three straight and showing some stability could be just enough to reset optimism for 2025."

Tajwar Khandaker: "I don't want to overstate things given the 7-5 record that the Trojans would end up with even in the case of a win, but I'm increasingly convinced that a victory against Notre Dame tomorrow would dramatically swing USC's offseason momentum in a positive direction. USC's wins over the past two weeks, no matter how close or ugly, have already seemed to improve the vibes around this team quite a bit, and progress on the recruiting trail has seemed to pick up in turn as well. A win over Notre Dame would put the most emphatic of exclamation points on the end of the year, giving the Trojans their most impressive win of the season. Victories in rivalry games always count for more -- especially when you're in position as the underdog to pull the rug out from under the opponent's postseason hopes. If the Trojans can topple their hated rivals Saturday, the entirety of this season can be reflected on in a more favorable light. USC will look like a good team that encountered too much bad fortune earlier in the year, and one that's primed to build on its late-season success heading into 2025."

Jeff McCulloch: "Winning the last three games of the season should change the feeling about this team at least a little bit. They still underperformed this year, but it could have been much worse. The difference is the staff made the quarterback change before this three-game stretch so you can see there are changes being made. Still, this season is a net loss as the Trojans had playoff aspirations and that was wiped away very early. Short term, you have to be excited about how this team performed, especially if they beat Notre Dame as underdogs, though."