Notre Dame could be headed to a conference sooner rather than later, and the hiring of Pete Bevacqua might signal that reality. That is the well-thought out take from ESPN analyst Greg McElroy
Bevacqua, a veteran of the television industry, is a Notre Dame alumnus and most recently was chairman of NBC Sports. He replaces Jack Swarbrick, who had been the athletic director of the program since 2008.
The hiring of Bevacqua, who helped orchestrate NBC’s new television deal with the Big Ten, is an important move for a university with an independent football program. It also is not insignificant that Notre Dame recently became an AAU member institution, which at the very least positions them well with the Big Ten.
McElroy sees savviness from Notre Dame in the hiring of Bevacqua and an understanding of the realities of the importance of television in college sports today.
“He is very much entrenched in the television world, right? That’s his background and he understands it like the back of his hand. He understands the inner workings. He understands where things are going. He understands the importance of streaming- all these other aspects of it. So I don’t feel at this point. Notre Dame’s really in a big hurry to move. Why would they do it? There’s no point they’re leaving what is a really, really good situation for another really, really good situation,” McElroy said on ‘Always College Football.’
“You go in the Big Ten, you sign your AAU, for sure you collectively pool all your money and opportunities together. That’s great. But you lose the independence and the fluidity with which you’ve operated with for historically as long as I can remember, so I don’t get the sense that they are positioning themselves right now to align with the (Big Ten).
“But I wouldn’t be surprised if two or three years from now that becomes a realistic possibility. So we will always keep tabs on Notre Dame and the possibility of them aligning with a conference. But at this point, I have a difficult time thinking that an AD stepping down a new a AD coming in getting your AAU is any indicator of what might happen in the future. So ultimately, 10 years from now, do I think Notre Dame will be in a conference? Yes, I do. But not today, not in 2023 and not at any point that I can tell here in the immediate future.”
Notre Dame is certainly the next domino to fall – or not fall – when it comes to conference expansion.
The Fighting Irish would be a big boost to the Big Ten in terms of their massive national viewership. Academically they are a fit as well as geographically.
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