Next up: Notre Dame?

Husker Runner

Husker Runner

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Many believe the end game for the Big Ten all along has been to bring Notre Dame to the conference. Notre Dame just canceled its 2013 game against Army. What is brewing in South Bend right now?

"Unfortunately, we would have liked to play Notre Dame in 2013," Army athletic director Kevin Anderson said on Thursday. "But Notre Dame has found that it's not going to work for them."
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They're wising up. Maybe they've finally figured out that ND is no long the 500 lb. gorilla and that if they don't move soon, they'll be left on the sidelines.

 
EbylHusker said:
I'll be shocked if Notre Dame gives up its independence.
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I'll be shocked if they don't. I think when all's said and done, they're going to have no choice. It's going to be "join a conference" or "drop athletics". It's seriously going to be that big of an ultimatum for them.

 
Mike N said:
They're wising up. Maybe they've finally figured out that ND is no long the 500 lb. gorilla and that if they don't move soon, they'll be left on the sidelines.
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Doubtful. They don't have money issues and it's not like they have a hard time getting people to play them. They lose some of their mystique if they join a conference. They're going through a tough patch now, but they'll right the ship. The truth is, joining a conference probably has more negatives than positives for them.

 
EbylHusker said:
Mike N said:
They're wising up. Maybe they've finally figured out that ND is no long the 500 lb. gorilla and that if they don't move soon, they'll be left on the sidelines.
Click to expand...
Doubtful. They don't have money issues and it's not like they have a hard time getting people to play them. They lose some of their mystique if they join a conference. They're going through a tough patch now, but they'll right the ship. The truth is, joining a conference probably has more negatives than positives for them.
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How about if the conference shakeups result in a restructuring of the BCS, such that if you are not in one of the "super-conferences", you are no longer eligible for a "BCS" bowl game.

 
Hexydes said:
EbylHusker said:
Mike N said:
They're wising up. Maybe they've finally figured out that ND is no long the 500 lb. gorilla and that if they don't move soon, they'll be left on the sidelines.
Click to expand...
Doubtful. They don't have money issues and it's not like they have a hard time getting people to play them. They lose some of their mystique if they join a conference. They're going through a tough patch now, but they'll right the ship. The truth is, joining a conference probably has more negatives than positives for them.
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How about if the conference shakeups result in a restructuring of the BCS, such that if you are not in one of the "super-conferences", you are no longer eligible for a "BCS" bowl game.
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Not likely to happen. Exceptions have been made for Notre Dame in the past and will be again.

 
Hopefully the Big East will push them out for the other sports and ND will be forced to find a home. The ONLY home that makes sense is the B10.

 
Hexydes said:
EbylHusker said:
I'll be shocked if Notre Dame gives up its independence.
Click to expand...
I'll be shocked if they don't. I think when all's said and done, they're going to have no choice. It's going to be "join a conference" or "drop athletics". It's seriously going to be that big of an ultimatum for them.
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i agree with you. the only reason they have been able to hold out for so long is the lucrative nbc contracts, but they have been bad for a while and comcast may want to be, i don't know, profitable and will drop those contracts. and everyone knows there is no team that better fits in the big 10 than ND; and nebraska is a great fit, but still a distant second.

edit; also, teams will need to rely on the strength of their conferences more than ever with these super conferences.

 
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Mike N said:
They're wising up. Maybe they've finally figured out that ND is no long the 500 lb. gorilla and that if they don't move soon, they'll be left on the sidelines.
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That's the way that most B-10 fans I've talked to feel. Most of *us* (and I use that loosely, because I don't know every B10 fan) feel that ND is a haughty, arrogant, self-centered program, but has tons of value for the conference. *us* (again, loose term) wants ND to join so they can get their comeuppance and realize its now a middle of the road team (MSU), rather than an elite team (OSU), or a bi-yearly threat (PSU). Hopefully, ND learns its real place in reality, and understands that playing in a real conference, and not scheduling a dearth of unimpressive teams, will do more to get their program on track than anything else.

 
Nebraska fans still watch Nebraska across the country even if they're bad (if they can, at least). The same is true for ND fans, who are as rabid and widespread (moreso really) than our own. Profits are still being made from ND football viewing, even if they're down atm.

 
I don't know how long ND can maintain its independence and stay relevant. We are seemingly heading towards superconferences, which may mean that conference schedules will grow to more games and make it less likely that the better superconference teams will want to schedule OOC games against the Irish. Gone could be games against the likes of Michigan and USC. In fact, if the superconferences wanted to play hardball, they could issue a directive that member teams could only schedule OOC games against members of other conferences. Who would ND play then? MAC and Big East schools, week in and week out. Goodbye, ND.

Notre Dame better think long and hard about their next move in the chess match going on right now. I think they are, and I predict they will be in the Big 10 sooner rather than later.

 
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