The Georgia Bulldogs and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish have scheduled a home-and-home football series for the 2017 and 2019 seasons, both schools announced today.
In the first game of the series, Notre Dame will host Georgia at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend on Sept. 9, 2017. In the second and final game, the Fighting Irish will travel to face the Bulldogs at at Sanford Stadium in Athens on Sept. 21, 2019.
“This series will generate an overwhelming level of excitement for our student-athletes and supporters,” said UGA Director of Athletics Greg McGarity. “We have a tremendous amount of respect for Notre Dame and look forward to the start of this memorable experience.”
“Playing Notre Dame will be an honor and a great challenge for us,” said UGA head coach Mark Richt. “I have a lot of respect for the job Coach Kelly is doing there and I’m sure college football fans across the country will enjoy watching our two teams compete.”
The 2017 game will be the first meeting between the two schools since they met in the 1981 Sugar Bowl. Herschel Walker led UGA to a 17-10 victory, which ultimately led the Bulldogs to be crowned 1980 consensus national champions.
Notre Dame is the second scheduled non-conference opponent for Georgia for both the 2017 and 2019 seasons. The Bulldogs also play at in-state rival Georgia Tech both years.
The Fighting Irish have several games scheduled in 2017 and 2019 due to past commitments as well as their scheduling agreement with the ACC.
“As our football schedules evolved with the start of our Atlantic Coast Conference competition in 2014, we had future games slated with top-drawer opponents in virtually all the major conferences,” said Notre Dame vice president/athletics director Jack Swarbrick.
“One exception was the Southeastern Conference, so we are pleased now to be able to check that box. These will be two contests that will have great national appeal, in part because our only previous matchup came in a bowl game.”
“These are two very attractive football games against a Georgia program that also has impressive history and tradition. Mark Richt has done an excellent job keeping that program at the forefront, both in the SEC and nationally,” said Irish coach Brian Kelly.”
Football Schedules