Interesting Commentary by ND’s Swarbick on Independence/Conference affiliation

[buddy]

Billybud you are correct (Ugh!) If UConn had a choice, they would have chosen the ACC over the Big East. Much more money in the ACC obviously which is really the only thing that matters. BC and FSU won.

 

[Zissou]

Billybud you are correct (Ugh!) If UConn had a choice, they would have chosen the ACC over the Big East. Much more money in the ACC obviously which is really the only thing that matters. BC and FSU won.

It’s true money would win the day. For basketball fans though I think the Big East is a better home.

 

[CL82]

No doubt ESPN has a larger natural viewership of casual watchers. That’s why FoxSports is paying fair value for the content, to grow its share.

Are they though? That is a mighty weak payout though, admittedly better on a net basis than the American's new deal. Have you heard anything about Fox renegotiating the deal since there has been a change in membership?

 

[Zissou]

Are they though? That is a mighty weak payout though, admittedly better on a net basis than the American's new deal. Have you heard anything about Fox renegotiating the deal since there has been a change in membership?

I actually do think it’s in the range of fair. Everyone always wants mo money, but for Hoops it seems fair.

 

[Kolumbo]

It’s true money would win the day. For basketball fans though I think the Big East is a better home.

I think that's what we are going with for now. There would be a better argument if ND had chosen to go with the Catholic 7 than to switch teats.

 

[Seaa Blue]

1...The Irish have a historic beef with the Big Ten...going back to the days of more open anti Catholicism and being blackballed by Yost at Michigan for years.

Many fans are unaware of the fact that the Western Conference (the predecessor to the Big Ten) blackballed Notre Dame in the early part of the 20th century. The University of Michigan, far and away the most powerful school at the time, stopped playing Notre Dame's budding football program and convinced the other members of the conference to not play them in an indirect attempt to squelch ND's growth before they became a legitimate threat.

Notre Dame was blackballed by so many schools back then that they developed a nation wide schedule

2...When Gee was President at Ohio State...he prickled those historic sensibilities by some statements (some called anti Catholic and some just said stupid) that upset Notre Dame.

Notre Dame responded...you can read into what you will.

Notre Dame spokesman Dennis Brown said, "We find the remarks most regrettable, particularly regarding Father Joyce, who served Notre Dame and collegiate athletics so well and for so long.



3...Notre Dame seems content with their five game ACC schedule

4...Notre Dame is bound to the ACC until 2036...36 years from now. I don't care where they are in 40 years...I'll be gone.

Here we go again,..

1) Notre Dame should forever be grateful to Michigan for encouraging them to play elsewhere.
1.1) Michigan left the conference for 7 or 8 years back then, so it wasn't just an ND thing. Best I can tell, the rest of the Big Ten seems to forgotten what happened 100 years ago. Not sure if ND fans really care either.

2) Gee was the only person really listening to him(self).

3) Until something better comes along. With ACC (and perhaps NBC) revenue falling behind, I sense something better coming along. We may have reached a point where ND cannot invite itself and expect the red carpet to be rolled out immediately. The money is so ridiculous in the SEC and Big Ten that I think both conference would say, "sure we can talk; what are you proposing?".

4) My thoughts are (as mentioned several times over the years), ND football is part of the ACC (until 2036) provided that ND itself is part of the ACC. I really think they could pack up and move provided they take everything.

 

[buddy]

Here we go again,..

1) Notre Dame should forever be grateful to Michigan for encouraging them to play elsewhere.
1.1) Michigan left the conference for 7 or 8 years back then, so it wasn't just an ND thing. Best I can tell, the rest of the Big Ten seems to forgotten what happened 100 years ago. Not sure if ND fans really care either.

2) Gee was the only person really listening to him(self).

3) Until something better comes along. With ACC (and perhaps NBC) revenue falling behind, I sense something better coming along. We may have reached a point where ND cannot invite itself and expect the red carpet to be rolled out immediately. The money is so ridiculous in the SEC and Big Ten that I think both conference would say, "sure we can talk; what are you proposing?".

4) My thoughts are (as mentioned several times over the years), ND football is part of the ACC (until 2036) provided that ND itself is part of the ACC. I really think they could pack up and move provided they take everything.

They would have to give up all of their TV money. They are going no where

 

[Seaa Blue]

They would have to give up all of their TV money. They are going no where

Perhaps Swarbrick should be informed of the problem ?

"Well, we can right now. We acknowledge that there are external factors that could change that over time. We have to have a media partner to do it. We have a phenomenal media partner but if that were ever to change down the road, that would be a factor. What the college football playoffs evolve to over time. I'm not suggesting change is imminent, those things always evolve. That will be a factor for us. We're always going to look at it. Our preference, strong preference, is to stay independent but external factors may have a say in that someday," Swarbrick said

 

[billybud]

Swarbrick is talking of the necessity of joining the ACC in football...if that is the only path to a playoff...

The NBC contract, which only pays the Irish $15 million, runs through 2025....there is an opportunity in 2025 to make a choice of media partners (maybe go all in with ESPN, maybe not).

A long term media renewal with NBC would be a good sign that Notre Dame intends to lock into being indy.

But ....the Irish are stuck with the ACC, in one form or another, for another 16 years.

 

[Seaa Blue]

You may be correct, but I just don't see that much love expressed there for their current host. I have a sense that Amazon will own the Irish, but I'm not quite sure how yet.

 

[billybud]

"Swarbrick said earlier this week that he knows the lack of conference affiliation could have a negative impact on the Irish long-term, but Notre Dame president Rev. John Jenkins noted recently that the university is happy with its independence.

"We're very happy with our relationship with the ACC," he said. "It's a great conference. It fits us. We're very happy there, and that allows football to retain its independence. It's a great situation for us. We're not looking for anything else because we're very happy with the current situation.

"We're an independent not because it helps or hurts us with the College Football Playoff, but it really is who we are. We started in the 1910s, 1920s. We couldn't get into what was then the Big Ten.

... Our fan base is in California, it's in New York, it's in Pennsylvania, Ohio. We're an independent because it allows us to have a national profile, and really, that's who we are."

Should Notre Dame decide to join a conference full-time before 2036, it would be required to join the ACC, with which it has a contract that currently calls for the Irish to play five league games per season."

 

[nd73]

"Swarbrick said earlier this week that he knows the lack of conference affiliation could have a negative impact on the Irish long-term, but Notre Dame president Rev. John Jenkins noted recently that the university is happy with its independence.

"We're very happy with our relationship with the ACC," he said. "It's a great conference. It fits us. We're very happy there, and that allows football to retain its independence. It's a great situation for us. We're not looking for anything else because we're very happy with the current situation.

"We're an independent not because it helps or hurts us with the College Football Playoff, but it really is who we are. We started in the 1910s, 1920s. We couldn't get into what was then the Big Ten.

... Our fan base is in California, it's in New York, it's in Pennsylvania, Ohio. We're an independent because it allows us to have a national profile, and really, that's who we are."

Should Notre Dame decide to join a conference full-time before 2036, it would be required to join the ACC, with which it has a contract that currently calls for the Irish to play five league games per season."

So yeah, same as what has been said for 25 years (since Big 10 invite was rejected).

 

[billybud]

So yeah, same as what has been said for 25 years (since Big 10 invite was rejected).

Pretty much...the strong emphasis on the Irish's identity being defined by football independence.

But...add to that... a satisfaction with the current arrangement with the ACC....

I think that Notre Dame is where they will be for a long time.

 

[Dean Wormer]

Pretty much...the strong emphasis on the Irish's identity being defined by football independence.

But...add to that... a satisfaction with the current arrangement with the ACC....

I think that Notre Dame is where they will be for a long time.

Meh. Notre Dame is the white whale, the c-tease of realignment. They always lift their skirts to get you to pay attention to their goodies, but deep down they just wanna be chased.

 

[billybud]

To my knowledge...Notre Dame has not ever hinted that they want to be other than a football independent...

If parking their other sports somewhere is a "tease"...shame on those that bite.

The ACC has always known...Swofford and the ACC have said that they would welcome the Irish...BUT

"But Swofford made it clear that neither he nor the conference as a whole believes that will happen though. He went so far as to say he’s never even bought into the notion that it is a “matter of time” before the Fighting Irish join."

 

[don356]

I think UConn fans will like the TV contract. While FoxSports has a smaller casual audience than ESPN, every game is on national TV. It’s very convenient for the Big East fan.

Admittedly it took me a while to get FS1 a channel surfing habit, but I now check FS1 before ESPN. If there is a good Big East game I won’t look further. In general I also think the broadcast teams are better on FoxSports.

The real fans will find the content on FoxSports. The complete coverage of the Big East is very convenient.

No doubt ESPN has a larger natural viewership of casual watchers. That’s why FoxSports is paying fair value for the content, to grow its share.

First thing they need to do to enhance that network is can Steve Lappas. He's annoying as hell.

 

[Irishfan]

Here we go again,..

1) Notre Dame should forever be grateful to Michigan for encouraging them to play elsewhere.

Likewise, should UConn and their fans be forever grateful to Boston College for encouraging them to play elsewhere, and not in the ACC.

 

[buddy]

Likewise, should UConn and their fans be forever grateful to Boston College for encouraging them to play elsewhere, and not in the ACC.

That certainly is one way of stating it. It certainly has worked out a lot better for ND than it has for UConn.

 

[billybud]

It took a while for Notre Dame...and before jet travel, through the 40's...their nationwide schedule wasn't terribly travel friendly...the '49 team took 70 hours roundtrip on trains to play Washington.

The Irish travelled to USC and back by train from 1926 into the 1950's.

The Irish did what it took...

 

[Irishfan]

It took a while for Notre Dame...and before jet travel, through the 40's...their nationwide schedule wasn't terribly travel friendly...the '49 team took 70 hours roundtrip on trains to play Washington.

The Irish travelled to USC and back by train from 1926 into the 1950's.

The Irish did what it took...

the advantage and the curse of being an independent.

 

[CL82]

Likewise, should UConn and their fans be forever grateful to Boston College for encouraging them to play elsewhere, and not in the ACC.

Lol, because the two schools are identically situated right now.

 

[Irishfan]

Lol, because the two schools are identically situated right now.

not now. But probably not that different from where ND was when Michigan blackballed us. Let’s see where UConn football is in about 40 years.

 

[Zissou]

First thing they need to do to enhance that network is can Steve Lappas. He's annoying as hell.

Isn't Lappas CBS?

Gus is the Prime Time voice

 

[CL82]

not now. But probably not that different from where ND was when Michigan blackballed us. Let’s see where UConn football is in about 40 years.

Lol, kind of a different climate right now, right? When ND was blackballed it wasn't costing them $30M a year in media money. It was a scheduling issue, that's all. We're working out the scheduling issues. The media rights issues, well we'll work on that as well but finding an extra $30M (+) maybe be challenging.

 

[Irishfan]

Lol, kind of a different climate right now, right? When ND was blackballed it wasn't costing them $30M a year in media money. It was a scheduling issue, that's all. We're working out the scheduling issues. The media rights issues, well we'll work on that as well but finding an extra $30M (+) maybe be challenging.

It was a different climate in that football was the only sport that mattered. Being forced to take trains to Southern California or NYC to play teams that weren’t controlled by Michigan. UConn had an alternative when BC shut them out of the ACC, and they took that alternative, and then decided it made sense to leave that conference. ND did not have that option. The key was getting support from the alumni and building a fan base. There are over 120,000 UConn alumni in the state of Connecticut alone yet they seem to have a problem filling a 40,000 seat stadium. I think if UConn had a fan base willing to travel to see them play, they would have no problem generating invitations from various conferences when realignment opportunities surface.

 

[CL82]

I think if UConn had a fan base willing to travel to see them play, they would have no problem generating invitations from various conferences when realignment opportunities surface.

Lol. UConn travels pretty well. If you've ever seen us play in our home court - south, MSG, you would see the depth of fan support. The opponents compare UConn woman's team games to "the circus coming to town." They have been packing opponents arenas for years.

As for football... well bad coaches kill attendance and UConn has had two horrible hires. Prior to that though turnout was pretty decent. Here's a list of sellouts:

 

[Zissou]

Lol. UConn travels pretty well.

It's true. UConn fans will be in the top half of the Big East next year.

 

[Irishfan]

Lol. UConn travels pretty well. If you've ever seen us play in our home court - south, MSG, you would see the depth of fan support. The opponents compare UConn woman's team games to "the circus coming to town." They have been packing opponents arenas for years.

As for football... well bad coaches kill attendance and UConn has had two horrible hires. Prior to that though turnout was pretty decent. Here's a list of sellouts:
View attachment 50218

what has been the average attendance at home football games over the past five years? It appears from the list you provided that there has been only one sellout in the last 9 years.

 

[Zissou]

what has been the average attendance at home football games over the past five years? It appears from the list you provided that there has been only one sellout in the last 9 years.

On the UConn side of the argument - they have been bad recently. Their potential in the future is more gauged to a few years ago.

A note on the Irish attendance - I was at South Bend for the UGA game a few years ago and the stadium was 2/3 red! You get the credit for the attendance number, but your fans were sellouts!

 

[CL82]

what has been the average attendance at home football games over the past five years? It appears from the list you provided that there has been only one sellout in the last 9 years.

Google it if you are curious. As I noted it hasn't been great. The point remains that CT will support a winning team, much like most other places.

(Weird that you picked 9 years. Why not 10? It really doesn't matter if it's 4 sellouts or 1 does it?)