talk of ND joining a conference is a yearly topic it seems..as an outsider and UM fan, i'd love for ND to join the bigten...i'm aware of all the past gripes and grudges, and also how fierce the wish is for ND to remain independent...with the pending mediation in House V. NCAA likely to result in some sort of "revenue sharing", any thoughts or insights on if this is the not so gentle nudge to push ND into a conference?....most pundits are calculating that a settlement agreement could cost each P5 athletic department a minimum of 30 million a year right off the top of their budget for player compensation..
ND and House V. NCAA
- Thread starter bluehair666
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Dude, the Notre Dame Administration has zero interest in the Big 10. Never has.
No, you are not. Or you wouldn't be raising this issue..
There’s no upside to joining the big 10 and plenty of downside, especially with the college playoffs being expanded to 12 teams
So what is the realistic argument FOR ND to join a conference? I am obviously biased as an ND fan, and I can't see a logical reason for joining a conference. What are some talking points from the talking heads on this?
Do we know what the format is for the 2026 playoffs and beyond?
The current format has ND at a disadvantage in that ND can’t obtain a bye. I don’t know if that would make me want to join a conference, but ND is at a clear competitive disadvantage right now.
They also get an extra week of rest without having to play in a conference championship game. So they get rest and avoid injuries.
It's not all a disadvantage
That’s a good point but I’d prefer to play for the bye in the conference championship game rather than have to win four straight true playoff games. I’d imagine that some of those teams that lose the conference championship will still get into the playoffs.
If you are good enough you also get the 5 seed and you play the 12 seed which will likely be the group of 5 team, then you play the 4 seed, the weakest of all the conf champs
It's not all bad
Just curious. Why would you love ND to join the big ten? Knowing the past gripes and grudges and our fierce desire to remain independent, why bother to come here with a hypothetical “gentle nudge” question?
ND would fit best in the bigten in regards to geography, history, academics and existing rivalries..despise losing to ND, but love the rivalry..ND would be a feather in the bigten's cap, add prestige to the conference..sure, under current conditions ND will stay independent..however, there will be revenue sharing, and there will be the dissolution of the acc..unless ND wants to park its non football sports in the big 12 or sec, they will be pushed toward joining a conference...add in the reduced revenue after paying a compulsory $hare to the players, and it might be a fiscal necessity to join a conference for a bigger chunk of tv money...and my question came about because of the pending litigation that will result in mandatory revenue sharing..thought it was worth an ask
I'm not so sure the ACC will be dissolved, that's premature. But if it was, we could put our Olympic sports in any number of conferences including the Big10 but still stay an independent in football.
ND is not joining a conference any time soon. A lot would have to happen for them to make that move. No reason to right now
The acc is a better academic fit for ND
I'm in the minority here in believing that some day there will be a northern conference and a southern conference in NCAA football, and Notre Dame will eventually be forced to join the northern conference and probably play in what will be called the midwest division. I don't think there will be much choice in the matter because the conferences that would willingly take us in and provide us with a home for our other sports in exchange for a half-conference scheule on our part will be gone.
This is not as much a disadvantage as you believe. While the top conference teams play a conference championship game which in the new format is a playoff game itself. So at the end of the day it's a wash.
Hmm Non-elimination game + weeks of rest vs the opposite of that.
Yeah, no clear cut preference.
Agree. Not being tied down to a conference championship game evens things out.
Disagree. Notre Dame not having to play a conference championship game evens things out.
And frankly, I have no problem with the current deal Jack Swarbick brokered. End of the day, Notre Dame does not want, nor has it ever wanted, its football team in a conference full time.
I agree that not playing in a conference championship mostly makes it a wash with regard to the bye.
What about being 9-3 and winning your conference championship game to jump all the way to the #4 seed? Kansas State would have received a bye in 2022 even though they only went 9-3 before winning the Big 12 to get to 10-3.
Oklahoma State had a chance to do the same thing last year before they lost to Texas. You could even go 8-4 and win your conference to become the #4 seed.
Notre Dame doesn’t have that advantage.
The OP's post was that ND was at a disadvantage because of having to play an extra playoff game.
Conferences championship game is an extra game ND doesn't participate in, so from a number of games perspective it's a wash. Whether or not a 9-3 conference champion deserves the 4 spot is a different question.
Which part of the Notre Dame Administration, for decades now, wanting nothing to do with the Big 10 full time for football don’t you get?
The OP made no mention of ND being at a disadvantage because of the extra playoff game. That was me in response to post #6, which asked what the argument would be for potentially joining a conference. I offered the lack of a bye and later added the lack of access to the playoffs after losing three or four games.
Regardless of whether or not an 8-4 or 9-3 conference champ deserves a spot, that’s the current situation. If ND was in a conference, they could potentially make the playoffs with a 9-4 or 10-3 record and even get a bye on top of it.
That doesn’t mean I want them to join a conference.
I made no mention of what I want ND to do nor did I make any mention of what I think ND will do. I was simply answering post #6’s question. Give me a break.
It’s “very very unlikely” but Kansas State did it just two years ago and Okie State had a chance to do that last year? Texas in 2018 had a chance. North Carolina had a chance in 2022. They would have gone from #23 all the way to #4 just by beating a 10-2 Clemson.
9-3 teams with a chance to jump all the way to #4 with a bye. Yet ND goes 10-2 and is in no way a lock to even make the field.
Again, I’m not saying I want ND to join a conference.
Very very unlikely in the new format, only 4 conferences now. And I believe all leagues have done away with divisions so best 2 records will advance instead of best record in each division. So every team would have to have 3 or more losses and then you'd have to beat a team with that better record on the champ game
Don't see it happening very often at all
10 and 2 with this schedule we would not be a lock. 10 and 2 with some of our others we would be.
Relax. We'll be okay
I’m relaxed…just responding to your post and making the argument that ND is at a competitive disadvantage, which was the point of my original post.
I just don’t see how you can say very very unlikely when it happened just two years ago and almost happened two other times within the last two years. UNC was the #2 record regardless of division in 2022.
Last year Oklahoma would have been in at 10 and 2. So 1 team would have gotten in, big deal. Just go out and win and don't complain about what others do.
It will be a very rare occurrence, not worried about it at all
Nothing to worry about now, and no need to get worked up about unlikely hypotheticals.
That’s easy, what conference wouldn’t want to add ND? Not many advantages I can think of outside 1/ conference championships (which I personally have 0 appetite for) and 2/ never being ranked above a 5 seed is absolutely a disadvantage in great years but overall should benefit ND the majority of the time.
Okay…does any of that change the (apparent) fact that ND is at a competitive disadvantage?
I wasn’t saying anything otherwise. I’d probably say the exact same thing regarding ND needing to go out and win and I kind of like being at a disadvantage. Screw ‘em.
Just wait til one of the conference championship losers has to play an away game at south bend. Oh it's coming that's a guarantee
I fully understand why a conference would want ND; but my question was more personal, why the poster would love ND to join the big ten, etc…. We all know the arguments pro and con, and ND’s preference as long as there is a path to the NC and financial viability, etc… so wondering why a Michigan fan would come here and post about this and declare his love for the idea…WHY?
