Twenty years later, when USC and LSU meet again, only one team can emerge victorious.

The two teams watched each other from the East Room of the White House, each waiting for their photo op, each convinced they belonged there more than the other. But USC and Louisiana State had both technically been named college football national champions after the 2003 season—LSU by the Bowl Championship Series computers and USC by Associated Press voters—and both had been invited to meet with President George W. Bush at the White House in March 2004.

Later, as he congratulated both teams, President Bush joked that the two teams should decide immediately on the name of the champion.

“The South Lawn is pretty big,” Bush joked.

That afternoon, no football game was played on the White House lawn. Nor would the two college football powers play again for the next 20 years.

Learn more: USC wants to prove its revamped defense can win a ‘bare-knuckle fight’ against LSU

But two decades after their shared title, that will all change Sunday, as USC takes on LSU in Las Vegas in one of the most memorable matchups of college football’s opening weekend and one of the biggest games on the Trojans’ schedule. Their matchup may not determine the true champion from 2003 (many of the players in this year’s showdown weren’t even born yet), but the stakes are still high for USC and LSU, given the challenge that awaits them in the weeks ahead.

Both teams enter their openers under strikingly similar circumstances, which is sort of football’s version of the Spider-Man meme. Their coaches, USC’s Lincoln Riley and LSU’s Brian Kelly, are both entering crucial third years at their schools, with expectations sky-high and pressure to meet them. Both are replacing Heisman winners at quarterback with longtime backups who have been waiting their turn. And both have hired new coordinators, with new schemes, to fix two of the worst defenses in college football.

For two teams that have far more questions than answers on both sides of the field, Sunday’s game should speak volumes about where they stand. That’s precisely why they’d probably prefer not to face each other in Week 1.

With schedules filled with new powerhouse conference teams, both coaches recently wondered aloud whether it was worth scheduling high-profile nonconference games in the future. This game might even have been canceled, Kelly said recently, if the schools hadn’t been so far along in planning it.

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“Our schedules are already going to be so good that at some point you’re going to say, ‘Is it worth playing these games?’” Riley said at Big Ten media day.

Given everything that’s new and uncertain for USC and LSU, that remains to be seen. But looking at the matchup, it’s surprising how similar the two schools look on paper.

New Quarterbacks

It’s like their stories are from the same clichéd sports movie, former top quarterbacks both waiting their turn behind Heisman Trophy winners, two exemplary cases of patience in the age of the transfer portal finally getting their long-awaited chance.

Miller Moss and Garrett Nussmeier shouldn’t be expected to replace the dynamic passers they’re replacing. The sports movie plot doesn’t go very far in the real world, does it? But they should be capable guards, at the very least. Both were among the top 20 quarterbacks in the 2021 class, according to 247Sports.com, and both have three years of experience at their schools. Even their measurements are similar: Both are 6’2” and weigh between 14 and 15 pounds.

What they lack is videotape that opposing defenses can study. What can either team learn from the mere departure of the opposing quarterback in a meaningless bowl game?

“You take a lot of what they did in the bowl game because they had time to really settle into what they thought was his comfort level,” Kelly said of Moss last week. “He’s grown since then, so there’s going to be more to do on offense, but you’re going to take what Coach Riley has been able to do and you’re going to look at their offensive structure and start building your defensive plan around that.”

Learn more: USC leaders Miller Moss and Kamari Ramsey use skills learned from their years of chess

In observing what he can of Nussmeier, USC defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn said the 22-year-old doesn’t play like he lacks experience.

“He can make every pass on the field,” Lynn said. “He plays with a lot of poise, he plays well in the pocket, he extends plays well, he’s always looking to keep the play alive by throwing the ball backward. So he presents a lot of problems.”

New defenses

Even less is known about the direction both teams have taken defensively, with the introduction of new schemes and new coordinators. But it’s safe to say there’s still a lot of room for improvement from last season.

USC finished 121st in points allowed, while LSU finished 81st. Both teams finished in the bottom 25 in yards allowed (119th and 108th, respectively), largely due to the sheer number of explosive plays they gave up. USC gave up 71 plays of 20-plus yards—an average of 5.5 per game—while LSU gave up 68.

LSU’s new defensive coordinator, Blake Baker, brings an aggressive, blitz-heavy system from Missouri, where his defense had a sack rate of over 9 percent, ninth best in the country. And at LSU, he’ll have one of the most talented pass rushers in Harold Perkins Jr., making it critical that USC get the ball out as quickly as possible.

If that’s the case, there will be explosive plays for the ball catches. Not only does LSU lack experience in the secondary, but Baker’s defense also struggled with explosive plays last season because of its aggressive approach. Missouri was 97th in giving up plays of 20-plus yards, almost as bad as LSU.

Learn more: USC and UCLA season preview: How do they fare in the Big Ten?

For USC and its new defense, the most pressing question will be whether it can hold up at the line of scrimmage. LSU has one of the best offensive lines, with two top prospects at tackle in Will Campbell and Emery Jones, and two returning backs with years of experience as starters.

Lynn has worked some developmental magic in his lone season as UCLA’s coordinator, building the Bruins into the second-best run defense and a top-10 pass-rushing unit. He said this month that he thinks USC has more depth up front than the group he worked with last season.

That seems hard to believe, given the personnel. The interior is counting heavily on the progress of defensive tackle Bear Alexander, whom Riley described Thursday as “still very young in football.” USC also desperately needs a pass rusher to emerge from a group that has just 15 career sacks.

“We have guys who have the ability to win in different ways,” Riley said.

Third year coaches

Hours before Riley shocked the college football world, rumors were swirling that he would become LSU’s next coach. He silenced them that night, making it clear he wasn’t going to coach the Tigers. The next day, he was named coach of the Trojans.

Kelly, like Riley, left one top program, Notre Dame, for another. Both led their teams to the conference championship game — and lost — in their first seasons, and both failed to return in their second seasons.

Now that they’re entering their third season, the pressure is on to build a much deeper playoff group. Neither coach is starting on the hot seat, but both coaches would need a win in this marquee game.

Learn more: USC lineman Bear Alexander working to become the Big Ten star the Trojans need

The coaches, at least, believe in each other. Years ago, when Riley was still coordinator at East Carolina, the two talked about Riley getting a job on the Notre Dame staff, and Riley’s respect for his counterpart is evident.

“He’s done a great job everywhere he’s been,” Riley said of Kelly. “He’s been a great program builder, he’s had success at different levels. So I think he’s done a great job. He’s someone I’ve admired for a long time.”

Game Notes

Junior defensive end Jaylin Smith, who started at nickel and safety for USC, will open the season as one of the Trojans’ two outside cornerbacks. … Georgia Southern transfer Michael Lantz will be USC’s starting kicker and kickoff specialist. … USC has listed Alani Noa and Amos Talalele as the starters at right guard, and it’s unclear who will be chosen, though the signs from fall camp all point to Noa.

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This article was originally published in the Los Angeles Times.