By Sandip Srinivas on November 26, 2015

On Saturday, No. 13 Stanford (9-2, 8-1 Pac-12) will take the field against No. 4 Notre Dame (10-1) in what will be the Cardinal’s final regular-season matchup of the year. The rivalry has been incredibly competitive over the last decade, with seven of the last 10 meetings being decided by a touchdown or less. However, it’s not exactly a must-win for Stanford, as the team has already secured the Pac-12 North title and will play the winner of USC-UCLA in the Pac-12 Championship Game on Dec. 5.

In the last few years, results in the Stanford-Notre Dame game have been mixed. The home team has won in each of the last four years (something that bodes well for Stanford), while the higher-ranked team has won in each of the last five (something that bodes well for Notre Dame).

That being said, regardless of the winner, recent matchups between the Cardinal and the Irish have provided their fair share of excitement. Here’s a look at the last three contests for the Legends Trophy:

2012: “Classic goal line stand”

The 2012 matchup between these two teams was just about as ugly of a game as possible. There were 15 total penalties, 5 total turnovers and each side’s starting quarterback completed about 50 percent of his passes.

After four brutally physical quarters, the game was tied at 13. In overtime, Notre Dame scored on its first possession with a 7-yard touchdown pass from Tommy Rees to TJ Jones.

That put the onus on the Stanford offense, and unsurprisingly, the game came down to a goal-line possession. The Cardinal had the ball on the 4-yard line on first down before power back Stepfan Taylor was able to muster 3 yards on three downs. On fourth-and-1, Stanford handed it off to Taylor one last time, and on a controversial call, it was decided that Taylor did not break the plane.

Stanford walked out of South Bend with a tough 20-13 loss, its first against Notre Dame in four years.

2013: The heart of a Lyons

In 2013, Stanford found itself in a situation very similar to the one it’s in right now. The Cardinal had already secured the Pac-12 North, and with two losses, a spot in the BCS Championship Game didn’t look likely. Thus, it welcomed a talented Notre Dame team at the end of the season with not a whole lot to lose.

That was exactly how Stanford played. Tyler Gaffney ran for 189 yards and a touchdown, and a physical style of play led Stanford to a 24-20 lead entering the fourth quarter.

At that point, Wayne Lyons took over. The junior cornerback intercepted two late passes from Tommy Rees to help Stanford hold on for a 27-20 win. Lyons transferred to Michigan after his senior year to play for Jim Harbaugh, the man who recruited him, but he certainly made his presence felt as a Cardinal in the penultimate game of his junior year.

2014: Fourth and Golson

Senior Everett Golson had his stuggles against a tough Stanford defense, but he found his man right when he needed to.

With about a minute remaining in the game, Golson threw a 23-yard touchdown pass to tight end Ben Koyack on fourth-and-11 to put Notre Dame on top. It was a play in which Stanford’s secondary collapsed, and Koyack was able to break loose at just the right moment in order to give the Irish the win.

It was an exceptionally ugly game for Stanford that was somewhat emblematic of its 2014-15 season, as the team committed nine penalties and managed just 205 yards of total offense. However, the Cardinal had a chance to win, and they simply weren’t able to hold on.

Contact Sandip Srinivas at sandips ‘at’ stanford.edu.