Notre Dame has remained almost stubbornly independent in football for the entirety of their existence. But with some conferences making them lucrative offers, the Fighting Irish are going to be hard-pressed to turn them all down.
That isn’t to say that Notre Dame doesn’t have a price for remaining independent. According to Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports, Notre Dame is seeking a $75 million annual rights media deal from NBC to continue with their current independent arrangement.
Per the report, the media rights deal would include a partnership with the Big 12, effectively meaning that Notre Dame will play a lot of games against Big 12 teams on a regular basis.
But even then, the media rights deal that CBS and FOX stand to offer can still blow NBC out of the water. The Big Ten Conference could be eyeing a deal with FOX worth up to $1 billion. CBS will probably wind up giving the SEC a similar offer.
So it should be no shock that the news is of great interest to fans. Some think it will benefit the Big 12 mightily to get in on the deal, while others think the Big Ten will ultimately win out:
Notre Dame already have conference ties to the ACC and Big Ten. But their football program is the crown jewel of conference sports.
If or when Notre Dame finally does choose a conference, it will shake college football to its core.
Will Notre Dame stay independent forever?