TerryD

Please do it. No problem.

Replace them.

No matter what outsiders call it, ND is going to keep it.

The only question to be answered is whether a six game SEC deal would help secure football independence. If the answer is yes, then ND would do that. Whatever it takes to stay indy..........

If football independence was a 100, basketball would be a 10 and the other sports a 5.

I care nothing for UVA/UNC/Duke. I paid no attention to that, quite frankly.

ND is not joining the Big Ten, so the first part is moot. The second part is TBD.

He has nothing to do with ND. Nice try, though. Here is his Twitter bio: "Ryan G Thomas 🇺🇸🇺🇦🐈‍⬛🐈‍⬛🐈‍⬛🐈‍⬛ @Running_Ryan Corporate tax M&A/Int’l tax advisor, political junkie, BYU sports fan, & Fitness enthusiast. An esoterically eclectic Classical liberal FA Hayek. Georgetown Law Washington, DC Joined August 2011" (BTW, a Big 12 podcaster did a show yesterday on this Tweet.) ** Edited by TerryD at 3/26/2026, 1:00:58 PM

...are the big drag on ratings. Hence, ND's gripe.

"Also, I believe an alliance between the SEC and ND would shift Duke and UVA to join the SEC giving it access to the NC, VA, and certain northeastern markets (Duke has a huge NJ presence). People need to understand how ND impacts the UNC/UVA/Duke political relationship. Those three will follow each other if they are given the opportunity to do so. The SEC wants the midatlantic and ND might secure it. The trick is whether the Irish can find a suitable home for its Olympic sports if the realignment impact is to implode the ACC. ESPN could easily shift teams from the ACC to the SEC or Big 12 to maintain its inventory market share. B1G fans should not discount ESPN’s vested interest and incentives in this regard. If the Big East, rebuilt ACC, Big 12, or SEC can house other ND sports, ESPN will make it happen. It has a lot at stake and is highly motivated. That is why the B1G will gladly accommodate whatever ND requests. All eyes are on the Irish"

"If ND stays independent, it will be because the SEC gives it a 6 game scheduling agreement and the Irish can park their sports in the Big East if the ACC collapses. ESPN and the SEC are highly incentivized to keep ND out of the B1G. ND going to the B1G would create a significant revenue gap between the B1G and SEC and give Fox legitimacy over ESPN. Right now ESPN gets about 3-4 ND road games based on ND’s schedule with ACC, SEC, and AAC schools. It loses that with ND going to the B1G along with the Olympic sports coverage. Having a scheduling agreement with the SEC and filling out the rest of the games with Big 12 or ACC teams could get ESPN up to 5 ND road games and would also dramatically improve the value of NBC’s ND home game inventory. Also, it keeps the Olympic sports under the ESPN umbrella rather than the BTN." ** Edited by TerryD at 3/26/2026, 7:14:18 AM

I am tired of them threatening to do it. Either do it and get it over with or stop talking about it.

The schools and conferences cannot impose limits on players unilaterally. They have to negotiate with the players on those things. What is the controversy with my statement?

They do not exist.

The prior system violated the law. The Supreme Court cannot agree on anything, but they agreed 9-0 on that easy decision. Acknowledge that the players are employees, let them unionize, then collectively bargain with them. Everything else is just a waste of time.

It is 54-13 in the last five seasons, and 107-21 since 2016. In that time, ND has made the playoffs three times, won three playoff games and was in the national title game in 2024. My guess is that the above records are better than maybe all but 3-4 teams during that time period. If ND has not won anything, then about 125 FBS programs suck ass in comparison.

I am aware of it.

Maintaining football independence is the priority at ND, it will do anything/everything to keep it.

..the reaction of any other school who had the playoff rug pulled out on them at the last minute. FSU's reaction was to sue the ACC. What would be the reaction of Miami or VT or any other school in that scenario? Would they all just keep quiet and play in a meaningless bowl with most of the team opting out? Would they be good little ESPN soldiers and enhance the bowl's TV audience? Would they just grin and bear it? ** Edited by TerryD at 2/12/2026, 11:14:18 AM

He is willing to do whatever he can to do so.

Will SEC and Big Ten teams play ACC teams out of conference much going forward?

Those are all ND home games. ND takes the "show on the road", re-producing ND Stadium as much as possible. Road games are not re-located elsewhere, except places like Wake Forest who move them to NFL stadiums for the same reasons Navy does.

As most people on here say, the ACC is toast in 3-4 years. ND is making plans for that, which they think/hope/know will include scheduling agreements with the Big Ten and/or the SEC. That is what is going on. ND isn't going to leave before then and pay exit fees.

Navy has never played ND at home in Annapolis. Never in 100 years. Why? Navy controls the gate for that game and always moves it to a big NFL stadium to generate more money in ticket sales. That game is always Navy's #2 income-generating game after the Army game. It helps fund Navy's football program. It has always been that way. It is Navy's call. ** Edited by TerryD at 2/10/2026, 7:07:34 AM

..with ND merely agreeing to play "X" number of games against Big Ten schools but leave the ND/ACC relationship intact. Two other possible options discussed were ND putting other sports in the Big East or in the Big Ten. So, it is possible that ND and the Big Ten can do a stand alone scheduling deal. Think 3-4 games a year. The declared rationale of why the Big Ten would do this is that the SEC will if it does not and the Big Ten cannot afford to have those games go to the SEC instead of it. ** Edited by TerryD at 2/9/2026, 3:02:15 PM

...as in all things.

If his happens, ND will dump them in the Big East.

I am not an Iowa fan so his name meant nothing to me. Pete Sampson was the ND beat reporter. It was in the Athletic.

That is one half, not one third.

Don't they all want ND to leave the ACC? If so, what is the beef then?

ND even quietly approached the ACC and asked it to tone it down or shift to Alabama, to no avail. I don't think that this is just a ploy, I think that ND is actually frosted by the ACC's conduct (whether you think that it should be or not).

One a Big Ten guy, the other a Notre Dame guy. Both had similar but not identical predictions. Both agreed that ND would leave the ACC and do a scheduling deal. They differed on where ND's other sports would be dumped.

ND can sit in a stable orbit between the SEC, Big Ten and ACC and play one off against the other in order to keep football independent.

...for the "+ 1" P4 level opponent for the SEC besides its 9 conference games going forward. ND has scheduled Alabama, Auburn, Arkansas, Texas, etc...into the future. Greg Sankey doesn't want to do anything to force ND into the Big Ten.

He is upset because the "chatter" he is hearing from Big Ten sources is that this is not imminent but likely.

I wouldn't put too much weight on that one. (ND fans don't like ACC refs any more than anyone else does) I am surprised, though, that Flugaur spent over an hour talking about this yesterday. He spoke with many sources and didn't like what he is hearing about this as a Big Ten honk.

He says it is not imminent but is a real possibility. ** Edited by TerryD at 2/6/2026, 6:16:38 PM

It seems a lot of schools incur a lot of debt for these athletic buildings. Notre Dame does athletic building projects differently and thus avoids this type of debt issue. Notre Dame’s stadium renovations, particularly the massive "Crossroads" stadium project in 2017, were almost entirely funded through private donations (largely from its extensive alumni network), alongside advance ticket payment options. The university typically requires 110% of construction costs to be pledged before breaking ground. Those athletic buildings do not get built otherwise. "The process of building new facilities is not considered lightly. Notre Dame has implemented a construction funding policy, under which buildings are primarily funded by contributions from benefactors, and therefore, the funding of new buildings does not impact tuition costs. The construction funding policy was created in 2000 by Malpass, Sejdinaj and Rev. Tim Scully, C.S.C., the former executive vice president of the university, and was approved by the board. “We have a little more of a conservative approach to finances, which is consistent with our roots and heritage. A little more pay as you go, a little less leverage,” Malpass says. “The construction funding policy is one of the things that I’m most proud of because it put us in great shape.” (Unrelated but reflective of ND's financial policies, it has flatly rejected the idea of private equity)

With NIL and the portal, that "need" is greatly diminished.

I doubt that was the motivation. Keeping the ACC relatively intact to keep ND football independent was the primary driver, by far. ND's then president in 2008 labeled Stanford as ND's "aspirational peer". The two schools have a good relationship. Jack Swarbrick also graduated from Stanford Law School, so he had some personal affinity for Stanford.

...was a defensive measure to keep the ESPN deal and the ACC alive if 3 schools (FSU, Clemson, NC) left. No activation of the ESPN composition clause that kicks in if the ACC has less than 15 members. ND counts. ND has an affinity for Stanford, but the push was to help keep ND football independent by keeping the ACC/ESPN setup intact.

"I have a personal connection to Notre Dame, and everybody knows that. I worked there. I had two kids graduate from there. I’m Catholic to the core. I believe in the institution. I value what Notre Dame means and what it means to the ACC and am excited about our future together."

A one year safe harbor didn't obligate ND to a life sentence in a football conference. The ACC said "Try full membership, you will like it!!" ND said okay, tried it, did not like it at all and returned to football independence. The end. ** Edited by TerryD at 1/27/2026, 8:45:47 AM

I only commented on the "kick ND out" BS by saying, "Cool, no fees". It was my reaction to that irrational and nonsensical idea. ND isn't looking to go anywhere.