We finally have some clarity on what Notre Dame’s 2020 season will be like, assuming there is one. That meant it was time for the athletic department to talk about it. In athletic director Jack Swarbrick’s case, he called into The Paul Finebaum Show on ESPN Radio.
If you can’t find time to listen to the whole interview, don’t worry. Finebaum tweeted a couple of quotes from Swarbrick that touch on two of the hot topics of the moment: Notre Dame’s temporary (for the moment) ACC membership and how students on campus relate to the upcoming season:
Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick on how joining the ACC this year may impact his school's football future: “I don’t think it will alter our perspective, but one wonders as conferences move to conference-only scheduling what their futures will be like."
— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) August 6, 2020
Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick says students returning to campus will determine if there is a college football season. "Programs are doing what they can and are doing it well. Now the students come back. That’s going to determine more than anything we do.”
— Paul Finebaum (@finebaum) August 6, 2020
Swarbrick is right in that this season could cause Notre Dame to reexamine its independence if all goes well for it. More likely, it will depend on what other conferences do with their schedules going forward.
And what if Notre Dame suddenly experiences a COVID-19 outbreak this fall? Do the Irish go the UConn route and shut down their season? You can’t play football if the rest of the student body is dropping like flies. It’s all the more reason for those living and working on campus to take any and all measures to contain this blasted virus.