Many Atlantic Coast Conference coaches are infuriated about Notre Dame’s football independence despite the fact the school is in the ACC for all other sports, and I don’t blame them.
Notre Dame is one of three independent schools in NCAA football, and I don’t really understand why. I agree with the ACC coaches — it is unfair for Notre Dame not to have to belong to a conference. I didn’t like when the NCAA restructured the conferences and Maryland left the ACC to be a part of the Big Ten and Notre Dame took their place. If Notre Dame is going to be considered an ACC school, it needs to be an ACC school for all sports.
Another issue the ACC coaches have is the number of games Notre Dame would have to play. Many think Notre Dame should have 13 games on its schedule to make it fair and keep it uniform. Florida State Coach Jimbo Fisher made a valid argument when he said if Notre Dame wants to be included in the NCAA playoffs, then the independent teams should play 13 games.
The reason I agree with this statement is if Notre Dame is not included in a conference, there is no conference championship game for the school. You might ask why it matters if Notre Dame plays a championship game. In NCAA football, in most cases, having more than one loss on your record results in you missing a shot at the National Championship.
The majority of the conferences have a conference championship they play before the playoff starts. If both of these teams are in the running for the playoffs, whichever teams loses the championship will most likely be knocked out. Playing an extra game offers an extra chance to lose, but the Fighting Irish don’t have to worry about playing an extra game.
Clemson Coach Dabo Swinney shared his opinion on the matter and said he feels every playoff team should have to play 13 games.
Considering how competitive it is to get into the playoff, I think Swinney’s statement is valid. I also think teams belonging to a conference in any sport makes it better for the fans.
When teams belong to a conference, they get used to playing other teams within that conference. Take Maryland in basketball, for example.
When Maryland was in the ACC, it didn’t matter what their record was when they played Duke or North Carolina. They would go toe-to-toe with those schools because they were so familiar with those two teams.
If Notre Dame were a part of the ACC conference, it would make for better football because conference games are normally good games, but more importantly it would make it fair for all teams across the board.
