A linked article on ND and the ACC from a North Carolina sportswriter. He did not cover anything that most ND fans did not know. However it did contain one little nugget that I found very interesting:
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey and Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick have played this perfectly. Amid leadership turnover in the ACC, Big Ten and Pac-12, they used their positions on the CFP expansion committee to push a 12-team playoff format that served both of their interests, helping preserve Notre Dame's football independence while removing one important reason why Texas and Oklahoma would stay in the Big 12 at a time negotiations with the SEC were secretly ongoing.
The writer hints that Sankey and Swarbrick had the SEC's and Notre Dame's interest in mind as two of the four members of the expansion committee. The final 12-team format clearly is advantageous for both the SEC and Notre Dame.
The writer hints that while the other conferences might not be happy how this format favors the SEC and Notre Dame, he states - It's hard to believe the other conferences would block the 12-team expansion out of spite when it's going to be lucrative for all of them as well.
But it is clear that Jack Swarbrick protected Notre Dame's interests with the proposed 12-team playoff format.
Well done Jack.
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