Tag: notre dame independent

Brian Kelly shares thoughts about Notre Dame conference argument

The answer was about as good as you could have hoped for.

[autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] got a chance to speak on a variety of topics during SEC Media Days. It was inevitable that the LSU coach’s former employer, Notre Dame, would come up and whether it would join a conference. As it turns out, the Irish haven’t been on his mind much (big shock). However, he did offer these words about the program’s future:

This answer appears to be half-canned, half-improvised. Most canned responses wouldn’t or at least shouldn’t be talking about one’s golf game. Then again, wouldn’t you hit the course if you knew you only had a short time before all of your time and energy was focused on coaching? We’ve all been there.

At least Kelly is giving the impression that he thinks the Irish will be all right. It certainly wouldn’t have been a good look if he talked badly about them and thus incur the wrath of the entire fan base. Props to him for choosing his words wisely.

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Notre Dame atop 247Sports’ 2023 recruiting class rankings

What do you make of this?

With the verbal commitment from four-star receiver recruit [autotag]Jaden Greathouse[/autotag], Notre Dame strengthened its 2023 class further. In fact, 247Sports thinks very highly of what the Irish have done as far as talent coming in after this coming season. The site’s latest 2023 recruit rankings place Notre Dame at the very top. Its 17 four-star recruits are more than any other program, and five-star quarterback [autotag]CJ Carr[/autotag] makes this group even stronger.

It’s very interesting to see this happen when the Irish’s independence could be on borrowed time thanks to the potential mega-conferences coming to college football. If this group is able to put it all together to give the still-independent program its first national title since 1988, that changes the conversation drastically. From there, the Irish would be able to recruit even more big-name talent and remain relevant for years. Boy, wouldn’t this be the perfect way to silence some of these critics once and for all?

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Greg McElroy: ‘What if Notre Dame joined the SEC?’

Would you like this?

The pending major realignment of college football has everyone talking about Notre Dame’s future. Will the program stay independent, or will it join the Big Ten? However, Greg McElroy has decided to throw another wrench into the conversation. Chances are you won’t like what he’s proposing, but here it is anyway:

I guess the possibility of playing Alabama and/or Georgia every year would force the Irish to up their game as far as recruiting top talent. Besides that, there is nothing to suggest their culture would fit with the rest of the SEC’s. Sure, the fans have just as much of a superiority complex and desire to win as the other top dogs in that conference, but do you really want to see Tide fans at Notre Dame Stadium regularly? On top of everything else, the recruiting processes and standards don’t mesh well, so why make yourself an outlier?

McElroy’s pipe dream is just that, so he should put this possibility to rest.

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Pete Sampson: Big Ten news, expenses threaten Notre Dame independence

Where do you see Notre Dame in the distant future?

Seemingly everyone has a take on what the Big Ten welcoming USC and UCLA means for college football in general. One pressing issue is the long-term future of Notre Dame’s coveted independence. With the Big Ten and SEC on their way to becoming the sport’s two super-conferences, now might be the time for the Irish to consider how they will be able to stay competitive both on and off the field in the distant future. At least that’s what Pete Sampson, the Irish’s beat writer for The Athletic, says.

In a piece available only to subscribers, Sampson mentions Notre Dame’s effort to keep expenses from piling up and how it hasn’t been so easy in recent years. It appears the best path forward is the Irish finally joining the Big Ten, the conference that famously snubbed it multiple times when many of today’s great-grandparents were being born. With the ACC being left behind the changing landscape of college football, it makes less sense for the Irish to have a long-term relationship there.

Sampson concludes his piece with the following:

“For everything that changed Thursday, the reasons for Notre Dame to join a conference really have not. The school needs access to the national championship. It needs a home for its Olympic sports. It needs a broadcast partner. USC and UCLA joining the Big Ten doesn’t change all of those realities today. But it might threaten all three a year from now if big-time college football gets its own version of the AFC (Big Ten) and NFC (SEC), leaving the rest of the sport in an awkward in-between.

The question for (Jack) Swarbrick now is how far he can see ahead in the fog of realignment war. Because as much as Notre Dame values its independence, the cost-benefit analysis of that expense may be changing.

No, Notre Dame doesn’t need to run from the ACC today. But it needs to start plotting its next course, whether it takes it or not.”

Sometimes, traditions must go by the wayside to keep up with the times, even if it’s Notre Dame’s independence.

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Roy Philpott: Notre Dame’s goal ‘is to not be an ACC football member’

Another media figure believes Notre Dame’s independence is safe.

The more time passes, the less likely it appears the proposed College Football Playoff revamp will push Notre Dame toward a conference. After initial speculation that ACC membership was coming, more recent talk indicates that the Irish will keep their independence. Among the latest to join that chorus is Roy Philpott of ESPN. Appearing on the podcast “Gramlich and Mac Lain”, Philpott expressed confidence that the Irish do not wish to join the ACC for football:

At first glance, it’s still crazy to think the Irish willingly would give up the opportunity to ever have a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff. However, further study of the situation shows that they might not have been so tone-deaf in their approach to this after all. It’s become more obvious that 2020 was an anomaly and not a precursor. Normalcy is making its way back, and that includes an independent Notre Dame.

Roy Philpott: Notre Dame’s goal ‘is to not be an ACC football member’

Another media figure believes Notre Dame’s independence is safe.

The more time passes, the less likely it appears the proposed College Football Playoff revamp will push Notre Dame toward a conference. After initial speculation that ACC membership was coming, more recent talk indicates that the Irish will keep their independence. Among the latest to join that chorus is Roy Philpott of ESPN. Appearing on the podcast “Gramlich and Mac Lain”, Philpott expressed confidence that the Irish do not wish to join the ACC for football:

At first glance, it’s still crazy to think the Irish willingly would give up the opportunity to ever have a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff. However, further study of the situation shows that they might not have been so tone-deaf in their approach to this after all. It’s become more obvious that 2020 was an anomaly and not a precursor. Normalcy is making its way back, and that includes an independent Notre Dame.

Jerry Palm: Notre Dame won’t join a conference ‘anytime soon’

Maybe put the brakes on Notre Dame joining a conference?

The recent revelation of the proposed expanded College Football Playoff set off discussion on a variety of topics. Perhaps the most notable was the longtime debate over Notre Dame’s continued independence after the four byes in the bracket were reserved for conference champions.

ESPN personality Paul Finebaum was among those who called for the Irish to bite the bullet and join a conference permanently. Former college coach Rick Neuheisel took it a step further and speculated that Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick, who had a hand in constructing the expanded playoff, privately hopes this will lead to full-time ACC membership for the Irish.

However, Jerry Palm of CBS Sports has a different take. In an appearance during the first hour of Finebaum’s show Tuesday, Notre Dame inevitably came up at the 24:50 mark. Asked by Finebaum if the Irish joining a conference was a possibility, Palm said he doesn’t see it happening anytime soon. Also asked why the Irish won’t join a conference, he said that independence is part of the Irish’s culture and that it will take more than the proposed expanded playoff structure for them to give in.

Palm also mentioned the TV deal that makes the ACC the only conference Notre Dame can join through 2036 should it choose to do so. Based on the Irish’s future opponent schedule, the thought of them becoming a full-time ACC member should be perished at the moment. There are a lot of programs lining up for the opportunity to play the Irish merely because of the money and exposure it creates for them. Imagine how many more would be able to do that if the Irish weren’t locked into playing five ACC teams a year through 2037.

Notre Dame AD Jack Swarbrick explains Irish’s role in proposed playoff

There’s more Notre Dame involvement with this playoff than you might think.

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One of the first things people noticed about the proposed expanded College Football Playoff is that it rewards the top conference champions. Specifically, it gives first-round byes to the top four conference champions in the 12-team field.

With Notre Dame reclaiming its independence after a one-year absence, that would mean it can fare no better than the top seed without a bye. Many Irish fans cried foul, and longtime Irish haters were gleeful over the possibility of the program having the join a conference permanently.

Hold up, though. Not only does Notre Dame appear to be fine with this, but athletic director Jack Swarbrick was on the four-person committee that came up with the proposed playoff expansion. Here are some of Swarbrick’s thoughts as tweeted by Pete Sampson, the Notre Dame beat reporter for The Athletic:

So yeah, it may not look great for the Irish on paper, but it still works out for them in practice. If they had a team that was good enough, they still would be able to rest during conference championship week, and they always would be able to host a first-round game in South Bend. That being the case, the “Notre Dame must join a conference” crowd will have to keep shouting that argument for now. The Irish are staying independent, and that’s all they want.

 

247Sports: Notre Dame will be key player in 2021 playoff race

All eyes will be on the Irish in 2021.

While Notre Dame was able to quiet the “need to join a conference” crowd in 2020, it was all too eager to regain independence for 2021. Now that that’s happened, those critics inevitably are going to reemerge. However, what if at least for this season, the Irish will play a major factor in the College Football Playoff picture anyway? 247Sports seems to think that will be the case as it has the Irish in four of the 10 games it believes will shape the playoff race, more than any other program:

So if the Irish intend to take this at face value, they really are going to have be on their toes four times over a five-game period. Obviously, this could change if the Irish don’t get off to the start everyone is expecting. For now, at least one outlet has high hopes for the Irish as far as determining who makes the final cut. If it’s not pressure on the Irish, it’s the satisfaction of knowing their role for all of college football in 2021.

 

Andy Staples: Jim Phillips Must Have Notre Dame Join ACC Full-Time

Jim Phillips won’t succeed John Swofford as ACC commissioner until later this year.

Jim Phillips won’t succeed John Swofford as ACC commissioner until later this year. Still, he’s already getting pressure from outsiders to take drastic steps after he takes over. The latest proposal comes from Andy Staples of The Athletic. Only subscribers to the site can read this, but Staples wants Phillips to talk Notre Dame, for which he once was an associate athletic director, into making itself a full-time ACC member.

Frankly, Mr. Staples, we don’t care to hear about such a scatterbrained idea, and we doubt Jack Swarbrick does, either. The ACC needs Notre Dame more than Notre Dame needs it, and it should be fortunate to have the Irish involved at all. Having worked in South Bend before, Phillips, of all people, should know this and definitely would think twice before picking up the phone to submit this idea to Swarbrick.

Irish fans were pleased to hear last week that Notre Dame will resume its football independence during this upcoming season. Apparently, Staples couldn’t give them too long to relish in at least this type of normalcy in 2021. If Michigan hadn’t been so desperate to block the Irish from admission to the Big Ten a century ago, we wouldn’t even be having this discussion. Now, we’ve reached a point where old habits die hard, and there’s enough money pouring in already, so return this idea to the back burner where it belongs.