2. Notre Dame, it was fun while it lasted
Can we get Notre Dame back in the ACC for real?
Yeah, so the Irish are back to their Friends With Benefits relationship with the ACC after moving in for a year and playing house, but it was just so much fun.
Of course it’ll be great to get the USC game back, but Notre Dame could have that with a full eight-game football schedule, too. And it’ll be wonderful to get the showdown against Wisconsin in Soldier Field in Chicago, and playing Cincinnati will be a blast – dear heavens is the Notre Dame schedule a bear – but the Irish gave the the ACC a real, live College Football Playoff-caliber program to boost up the conference.
North Carolina will be strong in 2021, but it’s North Carolina – it’ll probably lose to Virginia or Duke or something to blow it.
Miami will be a thing again, but it’s Miami – it’ll play footsie with the idea of being a player in the ACC race before getting annihilated some time in November.
So once again we’re back to Clemson and the other 13, which is fine. Clemson would be the going-away favorite to win a 119th straight ACC Championship – it’s actually on a six-game streak, but it doesn’t really matter at this point – even if Notre Dame was in the conference, but the absence will be felt.
Oh sure, the Irish will phone one in late at night against Virginia Tech, and they’ll send a suggestive text to North Carolina and fire over a balloon bouquet to Virginia. And they’ll make all nice-nice with Florida State to start the season and Georgia Tech late, but enough.
If you like it, put a ring on it. Be a full-on ACC football member already, Notre Dame.
It’s already playing five ACC games. Go ahead and ditch that date with Toledo, and you can be forgiven for blowing off Purdue and Navy. Or maybe we can all survive without that date with the Badgers – as fun as that might be – to lighten things up a bit.
It won’t be right and it won’t be fun this time around if the Irish go 5-0 in the ACC and then some sacrificial lamb get fed to Clemson in Charlotte on December 4th.
– ACC schedule winners and losers