In a world of major change around conference realignment in college football, Notre Dame remains a fixed point of independence, and that’s something Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman wants to ensure into the future.
Freeman reiterated his preference that Notre Dame stays independent in football, considering it to be vital to the school’s history and prestige.
“It’s what this football program was built from. As long as we can, we will [remain independent],” Freeman said on The Joel Klatt Show.
“I have a lot of confidence in our administration and [athletic director] Pete Bevacqua, that he’ll always keep us in a position to be successful. So as long as we can keep that independence, we will.”
Notre Dame has always been independent in football, save when it played in the ACC during the Covid emergency in 2020.
By not playing in a conference, the school has been able to cultivate a more national footprint, establishing rivalries around the country, playing in front of larger audiences, building a national fanbase, and expanding its recruiting base.
More recently, critics have warned that Notre Dame’s independence in football could be a liability when it comes to making a national championship run, given the easier path that conference champions have when it comes to playoff selection.
But the Irish wore its independence very well last season, making a run all the way to the national championship game, ultimately falling in a close contest against Ohio State.
The playoff run was also very lucrative financially, as the school earned $20 million in that time: $4 million for making the field, $4 million to advance to the quarterfinals, $6 million to reach the semifinal, and $6 million to play for the title.
That’s in addition to a total of $9 million to cover expenses during the postseason.
Starting in 2026 under the new College Football Playoff contract, Notre Dame will earn around $12.5 million per year in base revenue distribution, a figure that is comparable to what ACC and Big 12 schools make.
While Freeman is happy with Notre Dame being independent, he also stressed that the school has to stay apprised of what incentives or disincentives exist going forward.
“But if there ever comes a time that we are in a disadvantage because we aren’t in a conference… [the school will] say, ‘Alright, we’re gonna join one of these conferences, and position ourselves to not be negatively impacted by being independent,” Freeman said.
“I think if you talk about being at a disadvantage to make the postseason, because you’re not in the playoff.
“Or if there comes a time when teams won’t schedule you because the Big Ten or the SEC are saying we’re gonna play nine games and we’ll play a crossover game and who cares about Notre Dame? Then I think there’s going to be a point where we’re forced to join a conference.
“But until that point happens, which it doesn’t look likely, we’re going to stay independent as long as we can.”
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