Notre Dame rumor, ACC expansion, & NBC contract

DrJacket

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I went to a meeting held by our AD a few years ago...Notre Dame was brought up and he said that ND was coming in as a part member as of now but they would be in full time down the road...FWIW.
That's consistent with what I've heard. It will be intriguing to see who they bring along in their wake. I don't think they'll come alone.
 

MWBATL

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That's consistent with what I've heard. It will be intriguing to see who they bring along in their wake. I don't think they'll come alone.

I agree that a move by Notre Dame might bring some surprising bedfellows. Most specifically, the possibility of Texas. Texas has long wanted to 'hook up' with Notre Dame, desperately tried to get them into the Big XII, and now that the Big XII saw its football champion get screwed, they might be more amenable to such a move to the ACC. And Texas is a damnably big and growing TV market.

Penn State would be a solid second choice, but I am less certain about them.
 

orientalnc

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I have a hard time seeing Penn State leave the B1G and all the money reaped from that alliance. If ND joins as a full member, they are the only natural rival for PSU in the ACC. Cincy, maybe. UConn, doubtful. Until they joined the B1G I thought Rutgers would be a good addition.

The talk of ECU joining the ACC is "illegal" in NC. UNC and NC State like being able to tell local recruits that ECU plays in the mid-level conference and will always be there. Having to recruit on a level field against Ruffin is not very appealing to them.

The toughest thing for locals to absorb is the loss of control. NC used to basically own the ACC. That horse is out of the barn and will never return. But it's still not completely accepted around here.
 

Oldgoldandwhite

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ND would have double the chances to make playoffs. As conference champs and as an at large. I would think a 10-2 or 11 -1 in conference would be better than as independent.
 

Skeptic

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ND would have double the chances to make playoffs. As conference champs and as an at large. I would think a 10-2 or 11 -1 in conference would be better than as independent.
I can't be the only one to think that at some point ND has to pay its own way, either in or out.
 

Augusta_Jacket

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Penn State will not be joining the ACC any time soon. Neither will Texas, or any school from the B1G, Big-XII or PAC-XII. Like the ACC, those three conferences are protected by a Grant of Rights. Of the Power 5, the SEC is the only conference without a GoR agreement in place. But let's be honest for a minute, no one is leaving the SEC any time soon. Realistically, there are only a few choices if ND were to come full time. Those choices are Cincy, UConn and Navy. Cincy and UConn are obvious, with UConn being very desirable from a basketball standpoint. Navy is the most intriguing, though. None of the aforementioned schools are football powerhouses, but Navy helps secure ND. ND has stated very publicly that they will not drop the Navy rivalry for any reason. Having Navy as a permanent cross division opponent would help lock in ND, and allow it to use it's 3OoC games for Stanford, USC and whoever else they want to play. Also, Navy fits better with the academic profile that the ACC Presidents are so proud of. Some people have mentioned USF, UCF and ECU as well, but I just don't see these three happening. If not Navy, my bet would be UConn.
 

Animal02

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Penn State will not be joining the ACC any time soon. Neither will Texas, or any school from the B1G, Big-XII or PAC-XII. Like the ACC, those three conferences are protected by a Grant of Rights. Of the Power 5, the SEC is the only conference without a GoR agreement in place. But let's be honest for a minute, no one is leaving the SEC any time soon. Realistically, there are only a few choices if ND were to come full time. Those choices are Cincy, UConn and Navy. Cincy and UConn are obvious, with UConn being very desirable from a basketball standpoint. Navy is the most intriguing, though. None of the aforementioned schools are football powerhouses, but Navy helps secure ND. ND has stated very publicly that they will not drop the Navy rivalry for any reason. Having Navy as a permanent cross division opponent would help lock in ND, and allow it to use it's 3OoC games for Stanford, USC and whoever else they want to play. Also, Navy fits better with the academic profile that the ACC Presidents are so proud of. Some people have mentioned USF, UCF and ECU as well, but I just don't see these three happening. If not Navy, my bet would be UConn.
If ND went to the Atlantic, they could maintain the yearly match with BC as well. ND kept the contract to play Mich State but dumped U of Mich interestingly, when the made the deal with the ACC
 

Augusta_Jacket

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If ND went to the Atlantic, they could maintain the yearly match with BC as well. ND kept the contract to play Mich State but dumped U of Mich interestingly, when the made the deal with the ACC

I actually think the ACC would use the chance to restructure the divisions slightly. ND has several other teams,such as Pitt and Syracuse, as well as GT that they have played historically.

Your point with Michigan is why I think Navy is the strongest card the ACC can play. If ND was willing to give up the Michigan rivalry, as big as it was, but is unwilling to give up the Navy game, then the ACC should be looking to add Navy to secure ND. It's not like there's a premium football school outside of the power 5 conferences that is readily available. It's either raid what's left of the Big East or use the last spot to secure the biggest fish (ND) still out there.
 

Animal02

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I actually think the ACC would use the chance to restructure the divisions slightly. ND has several other teams,such as Pitt and Syracuse, as well as GT that they have played historically.

Your point with Michigan is why I think Navy is the strongest card the ACC can play. If ND was willing to give up the Michigan rivalry, as big as it was, but is unwilling to give up the Navy game, then the ACC should be looking to add Navy to secure ND. It's not like there's a premium football school outside of the power 5 conferences that is readily available. It's either raid what's left of the Big East or use the last spot to secure the biggest fish (ND) still out there.
The top six teams in the conference would be GT, FSU, ND, Clemp, UM, and VT, so three would need to be in each division. If they go to a 9 game conference schedule, they would need to eliminate the permanent cross over. Could see them going to N/S divisions to ease travel.....especially for minor sports.
 

Skeptic

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I actually think the ACC would use the chance to restructure the divisions slightly. ND has several other teams,such as Pitt and Syracuse, as well as GT that they have played historically.

Your point with Michigan is why I think Navy is the strongest card the ACC can play. If ND was willing to give up the Michigan rivalry, as big as it was, but is unwilling to give up the Navy game, then the ACC should be looking to add Navy to secure ND. It's not like there's a premium football school outside of the power 5 conferences that is readily available. It's either raid what's left of the Big East or use the last spot to secure the biggest fish (ND) still out there.
Has Navy expressed any interest at all in the ACC? I don't try to figure these things but seems to me that if ND doesn't want all in, the ACC will not expand until it does. Not like the conference is actually hurting, given ESPN and bowl ties.
 

Whiskey_Clear

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I'd like to see ND all in....or all out. I get the play the ACC made but just don't fundamentally like a partial participant.

If ND does join in football I think PSU makes a lot of sense. But ND will be able to dictate who the 16th is when that time comes so I see Navy as a real possibility.

No SEC team will jump. Only Vandy might be a tiny possibility but I dont see that either realistically. Few power 5 schools will consider it IMO even if contracts allowed it. That brings me back to Navy again.

I honestly would not care to add any more schools from Florida or NC. Uconn...I could live with. Cincy?... No thx.

Considering all of the above......I come back to Navy yet again.
 

Novajacket

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ACC has petitioned to eliminate divisions to have championship game. If that went through we wouldn't need 16 teams. Just add ND no need for Cincy Uconn or Navy.
 

Animal02

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ACC has petitioned to eliminate divisions to have championship game. If that went through we wouldn't need 16 teams. Just add ND no need for Cincy Uconn or Navy.

And that would be a stupid idea IMO, I would rather eliminate the permanent cross over, Division champ determined by division record first, and only use overall conference record as a 3rd level tie breaker.
 
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