LOS ANGELES — Adoree Jackson returned a punt and a kickoff for touchdowns and caught a scoring pass to propel No. 12 USC to its eighth consecutive victory, 45-27 over Notre Dame on Saturday in the 88th edition of their famed intersectional rivalry.

Jackson, the Trojans’ do-everything cornerback, put on a dazzling athletic display in perhaps his final home game while USC (9-3) persevered through rain at the Coliseum to claim the Jeweled Shillelagh for the 11th time in 15 years.

“That was probably the most fun game I’ve ever been a part of,” Jackson said. “The crowd was loud, and we were having so much fun out there.”

Sam Darnold passed for 205 yards and two TDs, and Ronald Jones II rushed for 134 yards and an early score to keep the surging Trojans in line for a New Year’s Day bowl berth.

Josh Adams ran for 180 yards, and DeShone Kizer passed for 220 yards and two scores for the Fighting Irish (4-8). They finished their worst season since 2007 with their largest margin of defeat this year.

It all appears to be sending coach Brian Kelly into the job market. According to multiple reports, Kelly’s representatives are looking into coaching opportunities at other schools. Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick has said that Kelly’s job is safe. Yahoo! Sports was first with the report.

Kelly is 59-31 in seven seasons with the Irish, including two with double-digit victories. But their record this season was their second-worst in the last 52 years, and they were further damaged by the vacating of 21 victories from 2012 to ’14 for academic misconduct.

With an unbeaten run through October and November, USC completed a perfect home schedule and remained in contention for the -Pac-12 title.

“What an accomplishment by a group of kids that have been through some adversity and come out the other side of it,” USC coach Clay Helton said. “What this team and this group have is something special.”

Jackson is expected to head to the NFL next year, but the junior put on one more exhibition at the Coliseum. USC fans chanted “One more year!” throughout the second half at a smiling Jackson, who has scored five touchdowns against Notre Dame in his career.

A mere 17 seconds after Jackson made his 55-yard punt-return touchdown shortly before halftime, Ajene Harris returned an interception 33 yards for a score to break it open for the Trojans.

Jackson then turned a short pass from Darnold into a 52-yard touchdown with his world-class sprinting speed in the third quarter. He took a kickoff 97 yards for a score shortly afterward, hurdling past ND kicker Justin Yoon at midfield and sprinting to the end zone to strike a Heisman pose.

Chris Finke, Kevin Stepherson and Equanimeous St. Brown caught TD passes for the Irish, who finished their dismal season with a series of mistakes and poor sportsmanship. Notre Dame defensive lineman Jerry Tillery made two particularly dirty plays in the second half.

Tillery first kicked USC running back Aca’Cedric Ware in the helmet while Ware was on the ground with an apparent head injury. Tillery wasn’t penalized for that play, but he got a tongue-lashing from his coaches. Teammate Nicco Fertitta was ejected for targeting.

Tillery then received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty a few minutes later when he stomped on USC offensive tackle Zach Banner’s foot.

“You just can’t do stupid things like that,” Irish defensive lineman Jarron Jones said. “That’s going to reflect on you as a player. That’s going to reflect on your character.”