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Could this be the begining of the conference shuffles we have been expecting? It is hard to imagine why the ACC has more to offer than the Big 10 for the Irish. 'splain it for me, please.

I'm with you, SIA. Notre Dame has its own lucrative TV contract, its own BCS affiliation and a strong recruiting base from coast to coast. Why would ND join a conference and be obligated to share the most profitable arrangement in the country?

On the other hand, why does the ACC want the Irish? The report in the Charlotte Observer says that the arrangement the paper says ND has agreed to with the ACC allows ND to keep its own TV contract, would not have to share its bowl winnings with the other member institutions in the ACC and would have to schedule only a limited number of ACC opponents each year - anywhere from 3 to 5. I realize ND is a unique situation in and of itself, and is the marquee program in the nation, but the union doesn't make sense from either side.

I've always thought of Notre Dame as the only school where the players, coaches and fans are more in love with themselves than the Texas fans. They've always been extremely greedy in South Bend, and I can't imagine that stopping now. Their current deal is too sweet.

Their deal with NBC is only through 2005, and in the last decade, ND has not come close to a National Title...it's probably a wait and see, and just in case we suck, then we better make plans to join a conference.

I do not understand why they would move all of their travel to the ACC when MOST of their alumni live in the Midwest (Big10).

By joining the ACC, the implications are 8 ACC games (when they are a full member), so that is 4 ACC teams at home, and 4 on the road, allowing for:

1) either 1 or 2 home games against their traditional rivals (Mich, BC, USC, etc), for a total of 3 games against all those teams that they used to play.

That means they play the ACC plus Mich/BC/USC...that is murder. They will NEVER go undefeated then.

It also means they would play in some years only 5 home games -- against the big school norm.

2) Alternatively, they play the ACC schedule, and they start playing only ONE traditional rival so that they can play 2 patsies and keep the 2for1 scheduling against patsies going that allows for more HOME games -- which means in some years you would play 2 crappy non-conference games at home, and 4 ACC games.

Which means they will not continue their traditional rivals.

IF they were to go to the Big10, they get better geogaphic alignment and keep more of their rivals within their conference scheduling -- which would allow them to keep in most years some relationship with USC/BC/FSU etc..