The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Clemson Tigers have finalized an agreement that will see the two sides meet annually until 2038.
Notre Dame is already a de facto member of the ACC in terms of scheduling, having a deal to play teams in the ACC five times a season, and the Clemson game will count towards one of those commitments. However, the deal remains valid in case Clemson leaves the ACC.
In that scenario, Notre Dame would have to play five ACC teams and Clemson.
Both Florida State and Miami have also expressed interest in playing Notre Dame more regularly due to the power of branding, especially for programs who have storied histories with Notre Dame, dating back to the 80s and 90s.
“Today in college football, more than ever, it’s important for strong brands to play strong brands,” said Florida State athletic director Michael Alford. “That helps our brand, as well as all of us within the conference. We’ve been consistent in that belief for a while now as you can see in our nonconference scheduling philosophy. It’s important for our conference and our media partners.”
Miami athletic director Dan Radakovich echoed those comments, saying, “Brands need to play brands.”
Radakovich continued to express his point.
“The brands need to play each other more,” Radakovich said. “That’s what has to happen. Do we divide into two divisions? Who gets to play Notre Dame? How are we doing those kinds of things? And if the SEC goes to nine (conference games) we might have to go to nine as well with a bifurcated brands and non-brands [divide].”
If the ACC goes to nine conference games, it will join the SEC in making a similar agreement. In 2025, the SEC will play eight conference games with one non-conference game being played against a Power-Five or major independent team. The only major independent is Notre Dame.
If Notre Dame is tied up with the ACC, the SEC has two options. Adopt a nine-game schedule to maintain its advantage on strength of schedule or play Power-Five teams, teams that exist in the Big Ten.
In 2024, the Big Ten and SEC played each other several times. UCLA and USC played LSU, Wisconsin played Alabama, and Michigan played Texas.
Considering the SEC already has lasting rivalries with the ACC, the Big Ten, and as a result, UCLA, could see more SEC opponents in the future with teams that do not have historical ties to ACC teams.
Scheduling changes could impact UCLA and Cal playing each other in the future, even affecting their current deal to restart the rivalry.
Plus, if Clemson does leave the ACC, it would only be for the SEC unless something wild happens. There is a reason why both Clemson and Notre Dame agreed to keep the deal alive in case Clemson leaves the ACC, and with that guarantee, if Clemson does leave, it could trigger more realignment that would see even more teams join UCLA in the Big Ten.
Ensure you follow on X (Twitter) @UCLAInsideronSI and @tcav30.
Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
