Question: when was the last time northwestern beat a top 5 team at home

title: Northwestern Wildcats football
text: Starting in the 1920s , Northwestern and Notre Dame played for a Shillelagh until the mid-1970s . The trophy game was created at the behest of Knute Rockne , who wanted a rivalry in the Chicago area to help build Notre Dame 's fan base in the area . NU and ND stopped playing regularly after the 1970s , though the rivalry was renewed from 1992 -- 95 . When NU stunned Notre Dame as a 28 - point underdog in 1995 , the Chicago Sun - Times billed it as the `` Upset of the Century . '' . Notre Dame leads the series 37 -- 9 -- 2 . The two schools renewed their rivalry in 2014 in the first of a two - game series with Northwestern traveling to South Bend and upsetting Notre Dame 43 -- 40 in overtime . In 2018 , Notre Dame will travel to Evanston .