Will Notre Dame be forced to join a conference full time?

[OnceAhawk]

Its interesting; both #3 Oklahoma (at #11 Ok State) and #6 Notre Dame's (at #9 Stanford) regular seasons end on Saturday.

Both teams will only play 12 games where #1 Clemson, #2 Alabama, #4 Iowa and #5 Michigan State have to play a 13th game.

if Oklahoma wins, they are 11-1 and Big 12 champs and a Big 12 conference champion would beat out an 11-1 Notre Dame (did not win a conference championship) for the final 4. If Oklahoma loses, then you will have either an 11-1 Ok State or an 11-1 Baylor as your Big 12 Champion. Again, an 11-1 Big 12 conference champion would more than likely beat out an 11-1 Notre Dame team for the final 4.

Its really going to get interesting; in 11 days the final 4 is announced.

Will it be the Big 12 with off season decisions to make after being shut out of the CFP for the second straight year? Or will it be Notre Dame?

Who's in?

GO HAWKS!!!

 

[nu2u]

If Notre Dame wins out and is not selected there will be some very sour grapes but I doubt that it will produce a movement for conference affiliation.

The Domers see themselves as a gift to college football. They are a special exception to normal affiliations. Joining a conference would be mixing their divine heritage with the regular masses, an admission that their natural superiority has been forfeited. They won't join a conference unless it becomes obvious that they must in order to win a national championship.

I think it is more likely that they help push for an expanded playoff format, maybe an 8 team playoff system, where they would consider a 1-loss ND team to be an automatic selection which, if denied, would bring the wrath of God.

 

[neversurrender]

If they did join a conference I would guess it'd be the ACC like everything else they are in and with who they have an agreement for their football team to play a certain number of ACC teams every year.

 

[lonhawk]

Its interesting; both #3 Oklahoma (at #11 Ok State) and #6 Notre Dame's (at #9 Stanford) regular seasons end on Saturday.

Both teams will only play 12 games where #1 Clemson, #2 Alabama, #4 Iowa and #5 Michigan State have to play a 13th game.

if Oklahoma wins, they are 11-1 and Big 12 champs and a Big 12 conference champion would beat out an 11-1 Notre Dame (did not win a conference championship) for the final 4. If Oklahoma loses, then you will have either an 11-1 Ok State or an 11-1 Baylor as your Big 12 Champion. Again, an 11-1 Big 12 conference champion would more than likely beat out an 11-1 Notre Dame team for the final 4.

Its really going to get interesting; in 11 days the final 4 is announced.

Will it be the Big 12 with off season decisions to make after being shut out of the CFP for the second straight year? Or will it be Notre Dame?

Who's in?

GO HAWKS!!!

Notre Dame will faint before they join any conference. Golden dome syndrome.

 

[OnceAhawk]

If Notre Dame wins out and is not selected there will be some very sour grapes but I doubt that it will produce a movement for conference affiliation.

The Domers see themselves as a gift to college football. They are a special exception to normal affiliations. Joining a conference would be mixing their divine heritage with the regular masses, an admission that their natural superiority has been forfeited. They won't join a conference unless it becomes obvious that they must in order to win a national championship.

I think it is more likely that they help push for an expanded playoff format, maybe an 8 team playoff system, where they would consider a 1-loss ND team to be an automatic selection which, if denied, would bring the wrath of God.

agreed that they would rather have an 8 team playoff versus having to join a conference..

I don't like the fact that they only have to play 12 games where the CFP contenders from the B1G, Pac12, SEC and ACC have to play 13. That's a huge advantage for Notre Dame....and its a huge advantage for the Big 12, too.

 

[yerpHAWK]

I think it is more likely that they help push for an expanded playoff format, maybe an 8 team playoff system, where they would consider a 1-loss ND team to be an automatic selection which, if denied, would bring the wrath of God.

This, or if a 2 loss SEC team were to get left out (meaning SEC is completely shut out)

 

[l.todd]

Funny, I was thinking about this today. It became clear with the latest CFP ratings that being in a conference and going through that gauntlet would be an advantage, You will play a tougher schedule than a typical independant would. And that trend will only get more pronounced as conferences, such as the B1G require 9 conference games. I think ND would be well-served by joining a conference if things stay in the current format AND they miss out this year. It would clearly be in the best interest of college football if they were to join the B1G but would just as clearly be in their best interest to join the ACC, where they would be the big kid on the block.

 

[swihawk]

Forced? I don't see how. The get a LOT of TV revenue and bowl money and don't have to share it.

 

[naturalmwa]

If they did join a conference I would guess it'd be the ACC like everything else they are in and with who they have an agreement for their football team to play a certain number of ACC teams every year.

This and we all know they wouldn't win the ACC this year. So I doubt joining the ACC is really the lesson here. In fact being an independent is the only reason they are still in the conversation.

 

[Gridiron24]

They should have joined the Big 10 five years ago when the expansion happened. But, that ship sailed and we don't need their television market now that we expanded into the New York (....New Jersey) and Washington DC areas.

They already have one foot in the door in the ACC. I expect them to become a fully-fledged ACC member with the option to retain some of their traditional rivalry games against USC, Michigan, Purdue, MSU, etc.

 

[Hawk-A-Doodle-Doo]

In beating BC last week, ND did something it had never done in its football-playing history.......beat 5 teams from the same conference. If they continue to do that they may begin to earn some defacto conference cred.

 

[hawkbleeder]

ND didn't help themselves with those ugly arse green uniforms last week. I'd be interested in them if they were in the B1G, but as it stands, it's like asking me to watch a Tennessee game or something...I just don't have any interest in watching them play.

 

[mvhomerj]

Lose at Stanford, no more issues with them. That could very well happen.

 

[modeba2004]

Notre Dame will never join the B1G. They don't like the idea of having to face Michigan, MSU, Ohio St., Penn St., Iowa, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Northwestern, or Minnesota on an annual basis. Losing consistently to any of these teams would damage their ability to recruit against these schools. They have high academic entrance requirements which would also be a drawback. They would rather take their chances by controling their own scheduling than become a middle-of-the-road B1G team. If the do reach the point where they have to join a conference, it would most likely be the ACC where they could throw their weight around much like Texas does in the Big 12. Competition won't be as stiff for them in the ACC.

 

[OnceAhawk]

i just get tired of Notre Dame wanting it all. They want:

* Their own football TV deal, where they keep all the $$$ and don't have to split it 14 ways
* They want into the CFP, where they keep all the $$$, and don't have to split it 14 ways
* They want to play just 12 football games and jump a conference champ in order to be in the CFP
* They want to be in a conference for all things other than football and of course, the ACC gives in; oh, and don't forget to pay ND its share of that non football TV revenue

 

[OnceAhawk]

This and we all know they wouldn't win the ACC this year. So I doubt joining the ACC is really the lesson here. In fact being an independent is the only reason they are still in the conversation.

They don't win their conference
They don't have to play a 13th game

Yet they are in the CFP discussion?

 

[naturalmwa]

They don't win their conference
They don't have to play a 13th game

Yet they are in the CFP discussion?

Apparently