Notre Dame football has a clear decision that they need to make following the controversial final CFB Playoff decision
Notre Dame had their hand just forced, and there is a clear decision that needs to be made.
It has been an extremely frustrating 24 hours for Notre Dame football and its proud fan base. After both the Alabama Crimson Tide and the BYU Cougars lost in blowout fashion this past weekend during their respective conference championship games, most expected Alabama to move back to 10, BYU to be eliminated from playoff contention, and the Fighting Irish to have their slot solidified at No. 9 in the final rankings. That, of course, did not work out that way.
Not only did Alabama not move back, but the Fighting Irish were bumped in the ranking in favor of Miami despite neither team playing a game this weekend. As you can imagine, that series of events has caused many to become extremely unhappy with the process, even more than the result. That includes Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua, who joined the Dan Patrick Show on Monday to discuss the playoff decision and the Irish not being included.
One thing that was discussed during the segment was the Notre Dame relationship with the ACC, a league they have an affiliation with because of their allegiance in other sports, although the Irish stand as an independent in football. Bevacqua wasn’t happy, and there appears to be some irreversible damage that has been done.
“We were mystified by the actions of the conference to attack their biggest partner in football… They have certainly done permanent damage to the relationship between the conference and Notre Dame,” Bevacqua said during the interview.
Notre Dame has a decision to make
At this point, the affiliation with the ACC conference brings very little value to Notre Dame. They are, at best, the third-best conference in college football now, and that could be changing soon with the Big 12 conference seemingly heading in the right direction. With the Irish program being one of the proudest traditions in all of college football, attaching yourself to a product that is seemingly hanging on by a thread doesn’t feel wise. The ACC is a sinking ship that continues to churn out less and less quality.
With how much value and revenue Notre Dame generates for the ACC, you would think that they would be a little more supportive of them. Getting Miami into the playoff field is very understandable, considering that they are an official member. However, playing the Miami win over Notre Dame on repeat for days at a time seems a bit excessive. That doesn’t even count the various jabs that the conference has thrown at the Irish over the last several months, which were odd at the time, and have continued to bring some bad feelings to the relationship.
This is not a plea for Notre Dame to join a conference. Notre Dame should maintain its independence as long as it possibly can. The longer you stay independent, the more valuable your program becomes.
This is, however, a plea for Notre Dame to tell the ACC to kick rocks. In a working relationship, there needs to be mutual respect between two entities, and clearly, there isn’t from the ACC side. Notre Dame has been able to survive on their own for a very long time, while continuing to thrive as a powerful program despite no outside entity helping to fund it. The ACC has always needed Notre Dame more than it has needed them, and it is time to end that relationship and take a step toward the future of possibilities.
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