The Thanksgiving Day renewal of the Notre Dame and USC rivalry played on November 28, 1964, was another exciting one. Notre Dame was ranked #1, undefeated, and an 11-point favorite going into the game at USC's Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Ara Parseghian, Notre Dame's first-year head coach, was in the midst of a huge Irish turnaround at 9–0 after ND went 2–7 the previous year. USC was unranked and was 6–3 on the season. Eventual Heisman winner and quarterback John Huarte captained the Irish to a 17–0 lead at halftime. That lead would be erased in the second half, however, as the Trojans, aided at least twice on critical plays late in the game by highly questionable officiating, took a 20–17 lead on a fourth-down pass from Trojan quarterback Craig Fertig to wide receiver Rod Sherman with 1:35 remaining. One very questionable, game-changing call came on USC's last touchdown drive when Fertig was hit and either threw or fumbled the ball backward, and it was recovered by the Irish defense. The officials, however, ruled that this was an incomplete pass. The score finished with a 20-17 USC victory. ESPN stated that this was the 32nd Greatest College Game ever played in the sport's first 150 years.
