Notre Dame Football: Reasons for and against Irish finally joining a conference

Reason to join No. 1: They are practically in the ACC already

Notre Dame joined the ACC in every sport except football in 2012. They did this when the Big East as we knew it for decades disbanded. The deal that was struck was momentous. They took all of their sports to the ACC but kept their football independence.

The trade-off — if there was one — was Notre Dame agreeing to a partial ACC schedule. They already played a rotation of three ACC teams every season, including Boston College every year. If Notre Dame joined a conference, the ACC is most practical.

The question then becomes, do the Irish join the Atlantic or the Coastal division. The divisions in the ACC do not have any rhyme or reason other than to put Miami and Florida State in different divisions. So, put Notre Dame in the Coastal with the opportunity to have Notre Dame vs. Clemson in the title game.

One thing we know about Notre Dame, they travel well. They’d do a lot for the smaller school’s football attendance. Duke’s student section was full for the only time last season when the Irish visited Wallace Wade Stadium. Think of how they would bolster attendance for Virginia, Wake Forest, Syracuse and other schools that haven’t drawn well recently.

Notre Dame joining the ACC is the obvious practical choice. Sometimes obvious and practical work.