Jack Swarbrick held a press conference and answered questions from the media on Wednesday night, just hours after it was announced that Notre Dame would join the ACC in all sports except for football. The Fighting Irish will also play five ACC football games per season while maintaining independence.
Notre Dame Press Conference: Independence, BCS Playoffs Major Factors In ACC Decision
Swarbrick stated adamantly that maintaining football independence was critical to Notre Dame. Swarbrick said that the mission is to have Notre Dame playing “everywhere in the country,” and that the school will continue its rivalry games yearly with both Stanford and USC.
By playing five times within the ACC, Notre Dame will have a large “East Coast footprint,” which coincides with Swarbrick and Notre Dame’s mission to be playing everywhere in the country.
Further, Swarbrick maintained that football independence was not only critical to maintaining a national presence, but to preserve Notre Dame’s media arrangement, which “serves Notre Dame’s independence.” There was no talk between ACC and Notre Dame about Notre Dame sharing NBC revenue with ACC schools.
The timing of Notre Dame’s decision was in large part due to the new college football playoff system. Swarbrick told the media that Notre Dame “began a deliberative process in considering options” once the college football playoff system was announced.
Notre Dame will begin playing five games against ACC opponents in 2014, when the Fighting Irish will host three games against ACC schools. Each year, Notre Dame will alternate between three home games and three road games.
Swarbrick maintained that Notre Dame will “meet its obligations with the Big East,” but also conceded that it’s likely in everyone’s best interest to move all other sports to the ACC sooner rather than later.
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