It's becoming abundantly clear the Irish simply don't have the type of explosive playmakers to compete with a loaded program like USC. Until the Irish close the gap in that regard, it will be awhile before they can compete on a year-to-year basis.

Right now, Notre Dame has two NFL-type players in terms of offensive skill players: Brady Quinn and Jeff Samardja.

USC has NFL-typle players everywhere you look, especially at wide receiver.